Reusable purified air breathing device

ABSTRACT

An air breathing device includes a casing and an air passage cavity encompassed by the casing. The device includes a set of air intake ports and air discharge ports that connect the air passage cavity to the outside of the casing. The device includes a set of dampers that allow the air to flow into the air passage cavity during inhalation through the air intake ports. The device includes a set of dampers that allow the air to exit the air passage cavity during exhalation through the air discharge ports. The device includes a retractable display screen to display content to the wearer. The device includes a fixed display screen to display images of the mouth of the wearer captured by a camera lens or simulated based on captured voice of the wearer. The device includes UV lights, filters, network connections, camera lenses, speakers, microphones, ear plugs, and heating coils.

CLAIM OF BENEFIT TO PRIOR APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional PatentApplication Ser. No. 63/315,686, filed on Mar. 2, 2022, and U.S.Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 63/192,575, filed on May 25,2021. The contents of U.S. Provisional Patent Application 63/315,686 andProvisional Patent Application 63/192,575 are hereby incorporated byreference.

BACKGROUND

Respirators are devices that are used to protect the wearers frominhaling hazardous gases, microorganisms, and particulates in the air.Some respirators may be designed to filter fumes, vapors, and dustparticles. Some respirators may be designed to filter microorganismssuch as viruses, microbes, fungi, etc. The respirators include singleuse face masks and reusable gas respirators with replaceable filtercartridges. The respirators are used for health and safety reasons byworkers in health care, manufacturing, construction, mining, and otherindustries as well as by private persons when coming into contact withother persons in crowded places.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The various embodiments of the present reusable purified air breathingdevice now will be discussed in detail with an emphasis on highlightingthe advantageous features. These embodiments depict the novel andnon-obvious reusable purified air breathing device shown in theaccompanying drawings, which are for illustrative purposes only. Thesedrawings include the following figures, in which like numerals indicatelike parts:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a reusable purified air breathingdevice, according to various aspects of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a side elevation view, FIG. 3 is a back perspective view, FIG.4A is a top view, FIG. 4B is a side perspective view, FIG. 4C is a backperspective view, and FIG. 4D is a bottom view of the reusable purifiedair breathing device of FIG. 1 ;

FIG. 5A is a side perspective view and FIG. 5B is a front elevation viewof an air flow control device or damper, according to various aspects ofthe present disclosure;

FIG. 5C is a side cross sectional view of the damper of FIGS. 5A and 5Balong the line A-A shown in FIG. 5B;

FIG. 6 is an electromechanical functional block diagram illustrating thecontrol of the motorized dampers, according to various aspects of thepresent disclosure;

FIG. 7A is a front perspective view, FIG. 7B is a back perspective view,and FIG. 7C is a back elevation view of a UVC light screen that islocated inside the air tube, according to various aspects of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 7D is a side cross sectional view of the UVC light screen of FIGS.7A-7C along the line B-B shown in FIG. 7C;

FIG. 8A is a front perspective view, FIG. 8B is a back perspective view,and FIG. 8C is a back elevation view of a UVC light screen that mayprevent the UVC light to leak outside the casing of the air breathingdevice, according to various aspects of the present disclosure;

FIG. 8D is a side cross sectional view of the UVC light screen of FIGS.8A-8C along the line C-C shown in FIG. 8C;

FIG. 9 is a top view of the reusable purified air breathing device ofFIG. 1 , illustrating different components of the air filtration andsterilization of the air breathing device, according to various aspectsof the present disclosure;

FIG. 10 is a side cross sectional view of the reusable purifiedbreathing air device along the line A-A shown in FIG. 9 , according tovarious aspects of the present disclosure;

FIG. 11 is a front cross sectional view of the reusable purified airbreathing device along the line B-B shown in FIG. 9 , according tovarious aspects of the present disclosure;

FIG. 12 is a side cross sectional view of the reusable purifiedbreathing air device along the line C-C shown in FIG. 9 , according tovarious aspects of the present disclosure;

FIG. 13 is a front cross sectional view of the reusable purified airbreathing device along the line D-D shown in FIG. 9 , according tovarious aspects of the present disclosure;

FIG. 14 is a perspective view of a reusable purified air breathingdevice that provides network connection, one or more cameras, one ormore display screens, a global positioning system (GPS) receiver, amicrophone, a flashlight, one or more wireless transceivers, and/or oneor more speaker(s), according to various aspects of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 15 is a side elevation view, and FIG. 16 is a back perspectiveview, FIG. 17A is a top view, FIG. 17B is a side perspective view, andFIG. 17C is a back and side perspective view of the reusable purifiedair breathing device of FIG. 14 ;

FIG. 18 is a top view of the reusable purified air breathing device ofFIG. 14 , illustrating different components of the air filtration andsterilization of the air breathing device, according to various aspectsof the present disclosure;

FIG. 19 is a side cross sectional view of the reusable purifiedbreathing air device along the line E-E shown in FIG. 18 , according tovarious aspects of the present disclosure;

FIG. 20 is a perspective view of a reusable purified air breathingdevice, according to various aspects of the present disclosure;

FIG. 21 is a side elevation view, FIG. 22 is a front elevation view, andFIG. 23 is a top view of the reusable purified air breathing device ofFIG. 20 ;

FIG. 24 is a top view of the reusable purified air breathing device ofFIG. 20 , illustrating the different components of the air filtrationand sterilization of the air breathing device, according to variousaspects of the present disclosure;

FIG. 25 is a side cross sectional view of the reusable purifiedbreathing air device along the line A-A shown in FIG. 24 , and FIG. 26is a front cross sectional view of the reusable purified air breathingdevice along the line B-B shown in FIG. 24 , according to variousaspects of the present disclosure;

FIG. 27 is a perspective view of a reusable purified air breathingdevice that provides network connection, one or more cameras, one ormore display screens, a GPS receiver, a cellular signal receiver, one ormore Wi-Fi and/or Bluetooth receivers, and/or an air heating module,according to various aspects of the present disclosure;

FIG. 28 is a front elevation view, and FIG. 29 is a top view, of thereusable purified air breathing device of FIG. 27 ;

FIG. 30 is a top view of the reusable purified air breathing device ofFIG. 27 illustrating further components of the air breathing device,according to various aspects of the present disclosure; and

FIG. 31 is a side cross sectional view of the reusable purifiedbreathing air device along the line A-A shown in FIG. 30 , and FIG. 32is a front cross sectional view of the reusable purified air breathingdevice along the line B-B shown in FIG. 30 , according to variousaspects of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

One aspect of the present embodiments includes the realization that along-standing challenge has been to devise a respirator (or face mask)that would sterilize the breathing air from ambient contaminants, suchas viruses, bacteria, air particulates, fumes, and volatile compounds.The existing respirators that are designed mostly for industrialapplications do not destroy microorganism, such as viruses and bacteria.On the other hand, the respirators that are used to stop microorganismdo not filter fumes and volatile compounds.

In addition, the existing industrial respirators are equipped with heavyduty filters with relatively high air pressure drops that would makebreathing difficult. High air pressure drop causes air leakage aroundthe perimeter of the existing respirators since air travels through thepath of least resistance. Because of the high filter pressure drops,these respirators are required to be tightly fastened against the faceto minimize air entry from around the perimeter into the respirators,making the respirators uncomfortable to use. These respirators may makeit difficult for users to communicate with other persons while wearingthe respirators. The users may not be able to use cellular phones and/orto have access to different networks such as the Internet and/or anintranet.

The present embodiments, as described in detail below, solve theabove-mentioned problems by providing a reusable purified air breathingdevice that removes undesirable air particulates and volatile compounds,and sterilizes the breathing air before entering into the users' body.In addition, the purified air breathing device of the presentembodiments sterilizes the breathing air being discharged before leavingthe air breathing device back to the environment, preventing the spreadof diseases from a sick person to other people.

The air breathing devices of the present embodiments may include a setof dampers (or louvers) that may control the direction of the air intoand out of the air breathing device during inhaling and exhaling of theair by the users. The air breathing devices of the present embodimentsmay include ultraviolet (UV) light sources (or lamps) that may destroymicroorganisms such as viruses, bacteria, and fungi. The air breathingdevices of the present embodiments may include a heating mechanism toheat the air before the air is inhaled by the users.

The air breathing devices of the present embodiments may include one ormore replaceable air filters, such as, particulate filters and/or carbonfilters. In some embodiments, an air filter and a carbon filter may beincluded, or combined, into one replaceable cartridge. The particulatefilters may be made of fibrous or porous material, and may be configuredto capture particulates such as dust, pollen, mist, fumes, and smoke.The particulate filters may be configured to filter oil based particlesand non-oil based particles. The carbon filter may be configured tofilter gases through a bed of activated carbon. The carbon filter mayremove odors and gaseous pollutants such as volatile organic compoundsor ozone.

The air breathing devices of the present embodiments may include networkconnections, camera lenses, speakers, microphones, ear plugs, etc., tofacilitate connecting to different networks and/or communicating withother persons. The air breathing devices of the present embodiments mayinclude one or more display screens to display information to the personwho is wearing the air breathing devices and/or to other persons.

The remaining detailed description describes the present embodimentswith reference to the drawings. In the drawings, reference numbers labelelements of the present embodiments. These reference numbers arereproduced below in connection with the discussion of the correspondingdrawing features.

I. Purified Air Breathing Device

Some of the present embodiments provide a reusable purified airbreathing device. FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a reusable purifiedair breathing device 100, according to various aspects of the presentdisclosure. FIG. 2 is a side elevation view, FIG. 3 is a backperspective view, FIG. 4A is a top view, FIG. 4B is a front and sideperspective view, FIG. 4C is a back and side perspective view, and FIG.4D is a bottom view of the reusable purified air breathing device ofFIG. 1 .

FIGS. 2-4D only show the components of the air breathing device 100 thatare visible from the outside of the air breathing device 100. The persondepicted in some of the figures in this disclosure is to illustrate howthe air breathing device 100 of the present embodiments may be worn by aperson (this person is referred to herein as the wearer).

With reference to FIGS. 1 to 4D, the air breathing device 100 mayinclude a facepiece 180, a casing 102, several harness handles 105, aset of harnesses 106 (FIG. 2 ), one or more UV light sources 108, a UVlight status indicator 196, one or more rechargeable batteries 109, adecontamination chamber (or air passage cavity) 110, one or more UVClight isolation screens 111 and 114, one or more air filter cartridges112, several sets of dampers 113 and 117, a UV Light on/off switch 122,one or more communications transceivers 130 (e.g., one or more wired orwireless transceivers), a processor 140, an air tube 147 for airtransfer between the decontamination chamber 110 and the facepiece 180,one or more electric heating coils 136, and an air pressure differentialsensor 139.

With further reference to FIGS. 1 to 4D, the air breathing device'scasing 102 may be made of a material, such as, for example, and withoutlimitations, hard plastic. The exterior of the casing may be thermallyinsulated by a layer of insulating material, by injected foaminsulation, or by other material and methods. For example, in someembodiments, the body of the casing 102 may include a cavity close tothe exterior of the casing 102, and foam insulation may be injected intothe cavity during the manufacturing of the casing 102. In someembodiments, the exterior of the casing 102 may include a layer ofinsulating material. In some embodiments, the back side of the airbreathing device, which is close to the face of the wearer, may not beinsulated to provide thermal comfort to the wearer.

The facepiece 180 may be attached to the wearer's face and chin. Thefacepiece 180 may include a nose enclosure 101 to enclose the nose ofthe wearer. The air breathing device 100 may include a lining at theedges of the casing 102, and/or inside the facepiece 180, where thecasing 102, and/or the facepiece 180 come into contact with the wearer'sface. The lining may be made of soft and flexible material such as, forexample, and without limitations, silicone, to make the air breathingdevice 100 airtight and to protect the wearer's face against the rigidcasing material.

The casing 102, the lining, and/or the facepiece 180, in someembodiments, may be made in different sizes to match the faces ofdifferent persons. For example, and without limitations, the airbreathing device 100 may be made in different sizes, such as, extrasmall, small, medium, large, extra-large, etc. Each size may come withan appropriate size of casing, lining, and/or nose enclosure.

The lining, in some embodiments, may be customized to fit an individualperson's face contours. For example, an external computer system at apoint of sale, or at an establishment, such as, for example, and withoutlimitations, a hospital, a factory, etc., may be used to measure anindividual person's face contours. Next, the computer's processor mayidentify an air breathing device size that best fits the individualperson's face. The computer's processor may then select one of manydifferent sizes of casing, facepieces, and linings for the selected airbreathing device size to further fit the air breathing device to theperson's face.

It should be noted that the casing 102 in different embodiments may havedifferent shapes and/or different contours. For example, in FIG. 1 , thefront and/or the sides of the casing 102 may be curved towards the back(towards the face of the wearer) in order to facilitate the lining tobetter fit to the contours of a person's face. In other embodiments, thefront and the four sides of the casing 102 may be formed in differentshapes. Accordingly, the present embodiments are not limited to theexemplary shape of the casing 102 shown in FIG. 1 .

The air breathing device 100 may include one or more air intake ports137. Different embodiments may include different numbers of air intakeports 137, and the air intake port(s) 137 may be positioned on differentlocations on the casing 102. The embodiment of FIGS. 1 to 4D include twoair intake ports 137 on the back side of the casing 102, as shown inFIG. 3 .

The air breathing device 100 may include one or more air discharge ports138. Different embodiments may include different numbers of airdischarge ports 138, and the air discharge port(s) 138 may be positionedon different locations on the casing 102. The embodiment of FIGS. 1 to4D include two air discharge ports 138 on the two sides of the casing102 (only one air discharge ports 138 is shown in the perspective viewof FIG. 1 ).

The air intake ports 137 may be covered by perforated protective screens157 to prevent the entry of large particles and debris into the airfilter cartridges 112 and the intake dampers 113. The air dischargeports 138 may be covered by perforated protective screens 158 to preventthe entry of large particles and debris into the discharge dampers 117.The perforated protective screens 157 and 158 are only shown in FIG. 3 .The perforated protective screens are not shown in other figures tomaintain clarity.

The air breathing device 100 may include several sets of dampers 113 and117. The damper 113 and 117 are used to regulate the air flow into, andout of, the air breathing device 100, respectively. The dampers 113 and117, in some embodiments, may be gravity dampers. In other embodiments,the dampers may be motorized dampers, controlled based on the airpressure differential sensor 139 readings, to regulate the motorizeddampers.

The air breathing device 100, in some embodiments (for example in anyembodiments described herein with reference to FIGS. 1-32 ), may includethe processor 140 and the computer readable media 141. The computerreadable media 141 may include different types of memory units, such as,read-only-memory, volatile read-and-write memory, and/or non-volatileread-and-write memory. The read-only-memory may store static data andinstructions that are needed by the processor 140. The non-volatileread-and-write memory may store instructions and data even when thepower to the non-volatile memory is off. Some embodiments may use asmall mass-storage device (such as a magnetic or optical disk and itscorresponding disk drive) as the non-volatile read-and-write memory.

The volatile read-and-write memory device may be random access memoryand may be used as system memory. The system memory may store some ofthe instructions and data that the processor needs at runtime. In someembodiments, the processes of the present embodiments may be stored inthe system memory, the non-volatile memory, and/or the read-only memory.From these various memory units, the processor 140 may retrieveinstructions to execute, and data to process, in order to execute andcontrol different electronic components of the air breathing device 100and to perform the processes of some embodiments. As used in thisspecification, the terms computer readable medium and computer readablemedia are entirely restricted to non-transitory, tangible, physicalobjects that store information in a form that is readable by a computer.These terms exclude any wireless signals, wired download signals, andany other ephemeral or transitory signals.

FIG. 5A is a side perspective view, and FIG. 5B is a front elevationview of an air flow control device or damper 500, according to variousaspects of the present disclosure. FIG. 5C is a side cross sectionalview of the damper 500 along the line A-A shown in FIG. 5B. Withreference to FIGS. 5A-5C, the damper 500 may be any of the intakedampers 113 or the discharge dampers 117 described above.

The damper 500, also referred to as a gravity damper or gravity louver,may include a casing 510 and one or more blades 520. Each blade 520 mayinclude one or more plates. In the depicted embodiment, each blade 520includes two plates 521 and 522. The plates 521 and 522 of each blade520 may move across a hinge 530 in order to tightly attach the plate 520to an adjacent plate. Each blade 520 may be connected to the casing 510by a hinge 530. The plates 521 and 522 are always at a fixed angle withrespect to each other and rotate together around the corresponding hinge530. Only some of the blades, plates, and hinges are labeled to maintainclarity. Some embodiments may include a backplate 540 next to each hinge530 to further ensure the tight attachment of the adjacent blades whenthe blades are closed to block the passage of the air.

In absence of airflow, the blades 520 of the gravity damper are in closeposition. The blades 520 of the gravity damper 500 are configured toopen or close in response to air pressure difference between the outsideand inside of the air breathing device 100. The physical arrangement ofthe intake dampers 113 of the entry port 137 and discharge dampers 117of the discharge port 138 (FIGS. 5A, 5B, and 5C) are identical and onlydiffer in their orientation in relation to each other. The orientationof the intake dampers 113 are opposite to the discharge dampers 117.

The blades 520 of the intake damper 113 are hinged toward the inside ofthe casing 102 of the air breathing device 100 so that the air can onlyenter into the casing 102 in response to the air pressure inside thedecontamination chamber 110 being less than the air pressure outside thecasing 102 (e.g., during the air inhalation when the inside air pressureis less than the outside air pressure). During the air inhalation, theblades of discharge dampers 117 are in close position and do not allowthe air to enter into, or exit from, the air breathing device 100through the air discharge port 138.

The blades 520 of the discharge damper 117 are hinged toward the outsideof the casing 102 of the air breathing device 100 so that the air canonly leave out of the casing 102 in response to the air pressure insidethe decontamination chamber 110 being more than the air pressure outsidethe casing 102 (e.g., during the exhalation when the inside air pressureis more than the outside air pressure). During the air exhalation, theblades of intake dampers 113 are in close position and do not allow theair to enter into, or exit from, the air breathing device 100 throughthe air intake port 137.

The dampers 113 and 117 are, therefore, configured, such that thebreathing air may only enter into the air breathing device 100 throughair intake ports 137, and may leave the air breathing device 100 throughthe discharge port 138. The dampers 113 and 117 provide the technicaladvantage of controlling the path of breathing air in response to airpressure difference between the inside of the decontamination chamber110 and the outside of the casing 102 when the air is being inhaled andexhaled.

The intake dampers 113 may be accessed (e.g., for service orreplacement) by removing the access cover 184 that provides access toboth the air intake dampers 113 and the electric heating coil 136. Thedischarge dampers 117 may be accessed (e.g., for service or replacement)through the discharge port 138.

Some embodiments may use motorized dampers. In these embodiments, theflow of the breathing air is controlled through the use of motorizeddampers. FIG. 6 is an electromechanical functional block diagramillustrating the control of the motorized dampers, according to variousaspects of the present disclosure. The motorized dampers 500 may becontrolled by the processor 140 of the air breathing device based on themeasurements made by the air pressure differential sensor 139.

With reference to FIG. 1 , the air pressure differential sensor 139 maybe located on the surface of the casing 102 of the air breathing device100. The air pressure differential sensor 139 measures, through theopening 181 of the casing 102, the difference between the air pressureinside and outside of the casing 102.

With reference to FIG. 6 , the motorized damper 500 may have similarcomponents as the gravity damper of FIGS. 5A-5C. With reference to FIG.6 , the motorized damper 500 may be any of the intake dampers 113 or thedischarge dampers 117 described above. The hinges 530 (FIGS. 5A-5C) ofthe damper 500 may be connected to one or more rods 660 that may beconnected to the rotating shaft 610 of the motor 600 through arotational to linear movement converter 620 in some embodiments. Inother embodiments, the rods may be moved by a piston-like linearmovement. FIG. 6 shows only one damper 500 and one motor 600. It shouldbe understood that some embodiments may use one motor 600 to control allair intake dampers 113 and all air discharge dampers 117, someembodiments may include one motor 600 per damper 113 or 117, someembodiments may include one motor 600 to control all air intake dampers113 and another motor 600 to control all air discharge dampers 117, orone motor 600 to control each group of air intake dampers 113 and airdischarge dampers 117 that are close to each (e.g., the air intakedampers 113 and the air discharge dampers 117 that are on the same sideof the casing 102).

The processor 140 may receive air pressure differential readings fromthe air pressure differential sensor 139. The processor 140 maydetermine whether to open or close the damper 500 based on the airpressure differential readings and whether the damper 500 is an airintake damper 113 or a discharge damper 117.

For example, when the air pressure differential readings indicates thatthe air pressure inside the casing 102 of the air breathing device islarger than the air pressure outside of the casing 102 by a firstthreshold, the processor 140 may send one or more signals (e.g., througha wired or wireless link 630) to the motor 600 to close the blades 520of the air intake dampers 113 and open the blades 520 of the dischargedampers 117 to allow the air that is exhaled by the wearer to exit thecasing 102. When the air pressure differential readings indicates thatthe air pressure inside the casing 102 of the air breathing device islower than the air pressure outside of the casing 102 by a secondthreshold, the processor 140 may send one or more signals to the motor600 to open the blades 520 of the air intake dampers 113 and close theblades 520 of the discharge dampers 117 to allow the outside air toenter the casing 102.

The motor 600 may receive the signals from the processor and in responseto the signals may rotate the rotating shaft 610. The rotational tolinear movement converter 620 may convert the rotational movements ofthe shaft 620 to linear movements and may move the rod(s) that controlthe position of the blades 520 (FIGS. 5A-5C). In response, the hinges530 may rotate the blades 520 to open or close the blades.

The gravity dampers and the motorized dampers of the air breathingdevices of the present embodiments provide the technical advantage ofbeing modular and replaceable. If the gravity dampers and the motorizeddampers of the present embodiments are broken or functionallycompromised, they may be replaced with new dampers without the need toreplace the entire air breathing device.

With continued reference to FIGS. 1 to 4D, the air breathing device 100may include a replaceable air filter cartridge 112 at each air intakeport 137. The air filter cartridge 112 may be accessed (e.g., forreplacement) through the air filter cartridge cover 183. The air filtercartridges 112 may include a particulate filter and a carbon filtercombined into one cartridge. The particulate filters may be made offibrous or porous material, and may be configured to capture (e.g.,through electrostatically charged fibers, such as, for example, andwithout limitations, poly-propylene, microfibers, nanofibers, or othermaterial) particulates such as dust, pollen, mist, fumes, and smoke. Theparticulate filters may be configured to filter oil based particles andnon-oil based particles.

The carbon filter may be configured to filter gases through a bed ofactivated carbon (activated charcoal). The carbon filter may removeodors and gaseous pollutants such as volatile organic compounds orozone. In addition to, or in lieu of, the air filter cartridges 112 thatinclude both particulate and carbon filters, some embodiments mayinclude individual particulate filters and/or individual carbon filters.

The filters of the present embodiments may be configured to suitdifferent applications such as, medical, industrial, and/or personaluse. Some of the present embodiments may require the filters to bereplaced after a period of time, for example, after several days,several weeks, several months, etc. In some embodiments, the airpressure differential sensor 139 measurements may be used to determinewhether the air filters need to be changed. For example, the air filtersmay need to be changed when the air pressure differential sensor 139measurements exceed a threshold over a period of time. As describedbelow, some embodiments may include a processor that may provide airfilter replacement warnings and/or may control the motorized dampersbased on the measurements received from the air pressure differentialsensor 139.

Since the prior art respirators rely solely on heavy duty filters tocleanse and disinfect the air, the prior art respirators inherently havehigh air pressure drops, which makes breathing difficult for thewearers. The breathing air devices of the present embodiments use theUVC light to disinfect the air and kill and/or disable harmfulmicroorganisms and do not rely on heavy duty air filters to disinfectthe air. The breathing air devices of the present embodiments thatinclude UVC lights provide the technical advantage of using air filters,such as nanofiber air filters, with relatively low air pressure drop, inconjunction with the cleansing action of the UVC light rays, that makeit easier for the wearers to breath than the prior art respirators.

With continued reference to FIGS. 1 to 4C and FIGS. 14 to 17C, theintake ports 137, the replaceable air filter cartridges 112, and theintake dampers 113, in some embodiments, may be designed to besubstantially the same physical size to assure a uniform air velocityprofile across the filter media. Unlike prior arts, a uniform airvelocity profile across the filter media is maintained to result inuniform dust particles, fumes, and vapor loading on the filter media,hence increasing the overall air filtration efficiency. Unlike priorarts, the replaceable cartridge 112 is located inside of the airbreathing device 100, and therefore it is protected from environmentalconditions like rain and snow.

With further reference to FIGS. 1 to 4D, the air breathing device 100may include one or more UV light sources 108 (shown as small roundcircles in FIG. 1 ) inside the decontamination chamber 110. For clarity,only some of the UV light sources are labeled and/or shown in FIG. 1 .The UV rays have sterilization and disinfection effects by destroyingthe molecular structure of DNA and RNA in microorganisms, such asviruses, bacteria, and fungi, resulting in growth cell death and/orregenerative cell death. The UV rays are divided into A, B, C, and Dbands, and the microorganisms disinfection effect is most effective inthe C band (UVC) with a wavelength ranging between 200 to 280 nm(nanometers), which may destroy microorganisms' DNA and RNA.

The UV light sources 108, in some embodiments, may be UVC light sources.The UVC light sources 108 may generate UV light with a wavelength of 200to 280 nm. For example, in some embodiments, the UVC light sources maygenerate UV rays with a wavelength that is substantially close to 265nm. The UVC light sources 108 in some embodiments may be UVC lightemitting diodes (LEDs). The UVC light sources 108 and the air filtercartridges 112 may create a decontamination chamber 110 inside thecasing 102 of the air breathing device 100. The terms decontaminationchamber and air passage cavity is interchangeably used in thisdisclosure to refer to a cavity that is encompassed by the air breathingdevice casing 102. The decontamination chamber (or air passage cavity)may be connected to the outside of the casing 102 through one or moreair intake ports 137 and one or more air discharge ports 138. Thedecontamination chamber (or air passage cavity) may be connected to thewearer's mouth through the air tube 147 that transfers air between thedecontamination chamber (or air passage cavity) and the wearer's mouth.

At least a portion of (e.g., and without limitations, 75%, 85%, 95%,99%, etc.) of the interior surface of the decontamination chamber 110may be comprised of (e.g., may be made of, or may be covered by) amaterial that reflects UVC light. The reflective material includesmaterial such as, for example, and without limitations, aluminum foil,expanded polytetrafluoroethylene (ePTFE), polyethylene film, etc. Thereflective surface provides the technical advantage of increasing theexposure of the microorganisms to UV rays.

In some embodiments, the interior surface of the air breathing device'scasing 102 may be embedded with one or more of the UV light sources 108that may expose both incoming and leaving air (in and out of the airbreathing device 100) to UV rays to sterilize and disinfect the air toavoid the spread of deceases. As described below, the air breathingdevice 100 is configured to totally encapsulate the UV rays, such thatthe skin, mouth, or eyes of the wearer are not exposed to UV rays, andthe UV rays may not leave the casing 102 and enter into the surroundingarea.

The number and the radiation flux of the UV light sources of the airbreathing device 100, in some embodiments, may be selected such that apercentage of (e.g., and without limitations, 90%, 95%, 99%, etc.) ofone type of microorganism or a percentage of multiple different types ofmicroorganisms inside the air breathing device 100 are inactivated bythe UV rays. The following is an example calculation of the efficacy ofUV light, with peak emitted wavelength of 265 nm, in inactivating thesevere acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) virus thatcauses COVID-19.

The radiation dosage of a UV light source may be expressed as shown inEquation (1):

D=E×t  Eq. (1)

where, D is radiation dosage in micro Joules per square centimeters

$\lbrack \frac{\mu J}{{cm}^{2}} \rbrack,$

E is the radiation intensity in micro Watts per square centimeters

$\lbrack \frac{\mu W}{{cm}^{2}} \rbrack,$

and t is the exposure time in seconds [s].

The article by Hiroshi Shimoda, et al, “Efficacy of 265-nm ultravioletlight in inactivating infectious SARS-CoV-2,” Journal of Photochemistryand Photobiology, Jun. 17, 2021, pp. 1-3, has provided the inactivationrates of SARS-CoV-2 for different UV radiation doses and different UVwavelengths. The contents of this paper is incorporated herein byreference. The required dosage per Shimoda et al. for 99% inactivationof SARS-CoV-2 using UVC LEDs, with peak emitting wavelength of 265 nm,may be expressed in Table 1:

TABLE 1${Radiation}{intensity}{of}{light}{{source}\lbrack \frac{µW}{{cm}^{2}} \rbrack}$  210 Exposure time [s]   14.4 $\begin{matrix}{{Dosage}{required}{for}99\%{inactivation}} \\{{{of}{SARS}}‐{CoV}‐{2\lbrack \frac{µJ}{{cm}^{2}} \rbrack}}\end{matrix}$ 3,022

Table 2 expresses the calculated exposure time for 140,000 μW of radiantflux, with peak emitted wavelength of 265 nm, in each of the twochannels of the air breathing device 100 of the present embodiments(each channel is the portion of the decontamination chamber 110 that islocated between one of the two UVC light isolation screens 114 and thecentral point of the UVC light isolation screen 111 of FIG. 1 ). Theradiant influx may be increased to any desired value by adding more UVClight sources. The required dosage expressed in Table 2 is based on theresearch article by Shimoda et al. The radiation intensity expressed inTable 2 is calculated based on the performance data of a commerciallyavailable UVC light source, published as “UV-C LED ProductSpecifications SMD 3535 Packaged LED,” by Bolb Inc., V4.0 March 2021.The contents of this publication is incorporated herein by reference.

The manufacturer has published the value of radiation intensity of 275nm wavelength light for distance of 1 cm. This value is

$\begin{matrix}8100 & {\lbrack \frac{\mu J}{{cm}^{2}} \rbrack.}\end{matrix}$

The manufacturer has also published the value of radiant flux of thelight when it emits light with wavelength of 275 nm and 265 nm. Theradiant flux for 275 nm wavelength is 40000 μW and for 265 nm is 35000μW. As the radiation intensity is proportion to the radiant flux, theradiation intensity of 265 nm light emitted from this UVC LED light maybe calculated as follows:

Radiation Intensity of Bolb Inc.'s UVC LED light model SMD 3535 emittedpeak wavelength of 265 nm at 1 cm is

${3500/4000 \times 8100} = {{7087\lbrack \frac{\mu J}{{cm}^{2}} \rbrack}.}$

If four of these UVC LED lights are used inside each channel of the airbreathing device 100, and assuming that each channel has 93% surfacereflectivity as a result of being covered with a UVC reflective materialsuch as ePTFE, then the radiation intensity inside each channel may becalculated as follows:

Radiation Intensity inside each channel is

${0.93 \times 4 \times 7087} \cong {{26250\lbrack \frac{\mu W}{{cm}^{2}} \rbrack}.}$

The assumption of 1 cm distance between the microorganisms travellinginside each channel of the air breathing device 100 and the UVC LEDlight source and reflective surfaces is a conservative assumption as theaverage wall to wall distance that the microorganisms are exposed to UVClight inside each channel is less than 1 cm.

TABLE 2 $\begin{matrix}{{Dosage}{required}{for}99\%{inactivation}} \\{{{of}{SARS}}‐{CoV}‐{2\lbrack \frac{µJ}{{cm}^{2}} \rbrack}}\end{matrix}$  3022 Distance from source [cm]   1${Radiation}{{intensity}\lbrack \frac{µW}{{cm}^{2}} \rbrack}$26250 Required Exposure time to achieve 99% inactivation   0.115 ofSARS-CoV-2 calculated by using Eq. (1) [s]

Table 3 shows the duration of air exposure to UVC light inside the airbreathing device 100 of the present embodiments in inhale or exhaleprocess. The parameters in Table 3 may be used for calculation of timeduration of air exposure to UVC rays inside the air breathing device 100of the present embodiments.

TABLE 3 Tidal capacity of an average adult human's lung [cm³] 500 Volumeof air passing through each channel in one inhale or 250 exhale [cm³]Cross sectional area of air channel in the air breathing device 5 100[cm²] Duration of peak, instantaneous inhale or exhale at rest [s] 0.59Velocity of air through the air channel [cm/s] 84.75 Length of eachchannel of the air breathing device 100 [cm] 13 Duration of air exposureto UVC [s] 0.153

Based on Table 3, the inhaled or exhaled air is exposed to UVC raysinside the air breathing device 100 for 0.153 seconds. This value isabout 32% higher than the required exposure time of 0.115 seconds inTable 2 to achieve 99% inactivation rate with 140,000 μW of UVC lightradiant flux (which is the capacity of the air breathing device 100 with4 LED light sources emitting UVC light, with wavelength of 265 nm,inside each channel). This result shows that the air breathing device100 is able to achieve at least 99% SARS-CoV-2 inactivation rate.However, it is also feasible to increase the radiant flux by adding moreUVC light sources. For example, the radiant flux may be increased from140,000 μW to 280,000 μW, to achieve higher inactivation rates.

There have been successful research efforts to determine the required UVlight radiation dose for inactivation of various microorganisms such asviruses, bacteria, and fungi. For example, the research article byDo-Kyun Kim et al., “UVC LED Irradiation Effectively InactivatesAerosolized Viruses, Bacteria, and Fungi in a Chamber-Type AirDisinfection System,” Applied and Environment Microbiology, Volume 84,Issue 17, September 2018, pp. 1-11, has data on the required doses fordifferent inactivation rates of various viruses, bacteria, and fungi.The contents of this paper is incorporated herein by reference. Suchdata may be used to adjust the radiant flux inside the decontaminationchamber 110 of the air breathing device 100 in order to inactivate aspecific microorganism that is present in the air.

This adjustment in radiant flux maybe performed by turning off some ofthe UV light sources inside the chamber or by adjusting the radiantpower of each UV light source. For example, commercially available UVLED lights are able to emit down to about 10% of their rated radiantflux.

The microorganism that may be present in the air may be selected from auser interface of an external electronic device and may be communicatedto the air breathing device 100. The processor 140 of the air breathingdevice 100 may set the radiant power to a level which inactivates theselected microorganism at a user defined rate, for example, 99%inactivation rate for SARS-CoV-2. The data for the required radiationdose for inactivation of various microorganisms may be uploaded to theair breathing device 100 by an external electronic device, such that, asnew data become available or new microorganisms are discovered, the airbreathing device 100 may continue to stay useful for the wearer.

The UV light sources 108 may be powered by one or more on-boardrechargeable batteries (e.g., and without limitations, lithium ionbatteries) 109, and/or powered through an external source via anelectric connection, such, as, for example, and without limitations, auniversal serial bus (USB) port 410 (shown in FIG. 4D) mounted on thecasing 102. The batteries 109, in some embodiments, may be removed andthe air breathing device 100 may operate via the external power sourceto reduce the weight of the air breathing device 100 and provideadditional comfort for the wearer. Power through the USB port 410 may beused, for example, and without limitations, when the wearer is sittingin an airplane chair or in an office chair over an extended period oftime. Power through the USB port 410 may be also used to recharge thebatteries. The electric connection (or the USB port 410) may also beused to send and receive signals with electronic devices that areexternal to the air breathing device 100.

In some embodiments, the UV light sources 108 may be turned on or off bya UV Light on/off switch 122. For example, in an environment where thereis little or no danger of microorganism exposure, the UV light sources108 may be turned off and the air breathing device 100 may be used toprotect the wearer from dust, fumes, noxious gases, etc., present in theambient or generated during various tasks. The UV light status indicator196 may be a window covered by a glass that converts the UV light to avisible harmless light to indicate whether the UV light sources 108 areoperating or not.

The casing 102 of the air breathing device 100 may be made of an opaquematerial to isolate the UV rays in the interior of the casing 102 andprevent the UV rays to leak out of the back side of the casing 102towards the face of the wearer. The UVC light isolation screen 111 maybe configured to prevent the mouth of the wearer from being exposed tothe UV rays. The air breathing device 100 may include the air tube 147to transfer air between the decontamination chamber 110 and thefacepiece 180. The air tube may be made of an opaque material. The airmay be transferred through air tube 147 into, and out of, the wearer'smouth. The UVC light isolation screen 111 may be positioned inside theair tube 147 to prevent UV rays to leak from the decontamination chamber110 into the wearer's mouth.

The UVC light isolation screens 114 may be configured to prevent the UVlight from leaking to the outside of the casing 102 through the airintake ports 137 and the air discharge ports 138. The casing 102 and theUVC light isolation screens 111 and 114 provide the technical advantageof completely confining the UV rays inside the casing 102 and preventingthe UV rays from reaching the wearer and from entering the surroundingarea even during the replacement of the air filter cartridge.

FIG. 7A is a front perspective view, FIG. 7B is a back perspective view,and FIG. 7C is a back elevation view of a UVC light screen 111 that islocated inside the air tube 147 of FIG. 1 , according to various aspectsof the present disclosure. FIG. 7D is a side cross sectional view of theUVC light screen 111 along the line B-B shown in FIG. 7C.

With reference to FIGS. 7A-7D, the UVC light screen 111 may be locatedinside the air tube 147 (FIG. 1 ). The UVC light screen 111 blocks UVClight from reaching the wearer's face while allowing air to pass. TheUVC light screen 111 may be made of, or covered by, materials that isopaque to the UVC light and do not reflect the UVC light.

As shown, the UVC light screen 111 may include three sets of one or moreplates 720, 730, and 760. The depicted embodiment includes a pluralityof plates 720, a plurality of plates 730, and a plurality of plates 760.The set of plates 730 may include one or more curved plates 730, the setof plates 720 may include one or more plates 720 that may be of anarbitrary shape, and the set of plates 760 may include one or moreplates 760 that may be of an arbitrary shape. The sets of plates 720,730, and 760 may be made of, or covered by, materials that is opaque tothe UVC light and do not reflect the UVC light.

As shown in the cross section of FIG. 7D, the three sets of opaqueplates 720, 730, and 760 collectively block all UVC lights 740, butallow air to go through the openings 750 among the plates 720, 730, and760. Each of the plates 720 may be positioned to extend within thecurvature of a plate 730. The set of plates 720, 730, and 760 areconfigured such that the UVC light 740 is prevented from reaching thewearer's face while the air may pass through the openings 750 that arearound the plate(s) 720 and within the concaved side of the plate(s)730.

The opposite sides of the sets of plates 720, 730, and 760 (collectivelymarked as 770 on FIGS. 7A and 7B) may be connected to the casing of theair breathing device. The function of the set of plates 760, in thedepicted embodiment, is to block UVC light 740 in oblique angles to passthrough the openings 750. Each plate 720 may be connected to a plate730, and each plate 760 may be connected to a plate 730 as shown in FIG.7D. For clarity, some of the plates 720, 730, 760, some of the openings750, and some of the opposite ends 770 that are connected to the casingare not labeled in FIGS. 7A-7D.

The collective shape of the set of plates 730 may substantially conformto the shape of the cross section of the air tube 147. For example, whenthe cross section of the air tube 147 is substantially circular, thecollective shape of the set of plates 730 may be substantially circular.In other embodiments, the cross section of the air tube 147 and thecollective shape of the set of plates 730 may be substantiallyrectangular, or may be an arbitrary shape.

FIG. 8A is a front perspective view, FIG. 8B is a back perspective view,and FIG. 8C is a back elevation view of a UVC light screen 114 that mayprevent the UVC light to leak outside the casing 102 of the airbreathing device, according to various aspects of the presentdisclosure. FIG. 8D is a side cross sectional view of the UVC lightscreen 114 along the line C-C shown in FIG. 8C.

With reference to FIGS. 8A-8D, the UVC light screen 114 prevents the UVClight to leak outside the casing 102 of the air breathing device 100.The UVC light screen 114 may be made of, or covered by, materials thatis opaque to the UVC light and do not reflect the UVC light. As shown inFIG. 1 , the UVC light screens 114 may be used to block UVC light fromreaching the air intake ports 137 or air discharge ports 138 whileallowing air to pass.

With further reference to FIGS. 8A-8D, the UVC light screen 114 mayinclude three sets of one or more plates 820, 830, and 860. The depictedembodiment includes a plurality of plates 820, a plurality of plates830, and a plurality of plates 860. The set of plates 830 may includeone or more curved plates 830, the set of plates 820 may include one ormore plates 820 that may be of an arbitrary shape, and the set of plates860 may include one or more plates 860 that may be of an arbitraryshape. The sets of plates 820, 830, and 860 may be made of, or coveredby, materials that is opaque to the UVC light and do not reflect the UVClight.

As shown in the cross section of FIG. 8D, the three sets of opaqueplates 820, 830, and 860 collectively block all UVC lights 840, butallow air to go around the openings 850 among the plates 820, 830, and860. Each of the plates 820 may be positioned to extend within thecurvature of a plate 830. The set of plates 820, 830, and 860 areconfigured such that the UVC light 840 is prevented from reachingoutside the casing of the air berating device into the surroundingenvironment while the air may pass through the openings 850 that arearound the plate(s) 820 and within the concaved side of the plate(s)830.

The opposite sides of the sets of plates 820, 830, and 860 (collectivelymarked as 870 on FIGS. 8A and 8B) may be connected to the casing of theair breathing device. The function of the set of plates 860, in thedepicted embodiment, is to block UVC light 840 in oblique angles to passthrough the openings 850. Each plate 820 may be connected to a plate830, and each plate 860 may be connected to plate 830 as shown in FIG.8D. For clarity, some of the plates 820, 830, 860, some of the openings850, and some of the opposite ends 870 that are connected to the casingare not labeled in FIGS. 8A-8D.

It should be noted that the light screens 111 and 114 are two examplesof UVC light screens that some embodiments use to allow the air to gothrough and block UVC light. Other embodiments may use other types ofUVC light screens to achieve the same result of allowing the air to gothrough and blocking the UVC light. For example, some embodiments mayuse a surface with grate like perforations that block the UVC light butallow the air to go around the perforations.

The air breathing device 100 may include one or more harness handles105. the harness handles 105 may be used to a set of harnesses (orstraps) 106 (FIG. 2 ) to the casing 102. For clarity, the harnesses arenot shown in FIGS. 1 and 3-4 . The harnesses 106 may be configured tosecure the air breathing device 100 behind the head and neck of thewearer. The harness 106, in some embodiments, may be made of soft andflexible material. The harness 106, in other embodiments, may be made ofsemi soft material to allow one or more accessories to be placed on theharness, as described further below.

Optionally, the air breathing device 100, in some embodiments, mayprovide one or more electric heating coils 136 to warm up the air beforebeing inhaled by the wearer. The purpose of the electric heating coils136 are to warm up the inhalation air in cold environments. Warming upthe breathing air may prevent the wearer from catching cold or pneumoniaduring cold seasons. The heating coils 136 may be located between theair intake dampers 113 and the decontamination chamber 110.

The source of power for the electric heating coil 136 may be theon-board rechargeable batteries 109 or through an external power sourcevia USB port 410 (FIG. 4D) mounted on the casing 102. Power through theUSB port may be used, for example, and without limitations, when thewearer is sitting in a chair and using the air breathing device 100 overan extended period of time. The air breathing device 100, may includeone or more air temperature sensors 131. The air temperature sensors 131may be configured to measure the temperature of the air being inhaledinside the casing 102 downstream of the electric heating coil 136 and/orthe temperature of the outside air prior to reaching the air filtercartridge 112. The processor 140 may receive the air temperature sensors131 readings and may control the air temperature inside the casing 102.

The air temperature sensors 131 measurements may be used by theprocessor 140 of the air breathing device 100 to control the temperatureof the air being inhaled. For example, the processor may regulate thetemperature of the air being inhaled by modulating (i.e., adjusting thetemperature up or down) or turning the electric heating coil 136 on oroff. The processor 140 may receive the temperature measurements from thetemperature sensors 131 and may compare the temperature measurementswith a user-selectable threshold. The processor 140 may receive firstand second user-selectable thresholds from an external electronic device(e.g., a smartphone, a desktop, a laptop, a tablet, etc.) through one ofthe transceivers 130.

The processor 140 may turn on the power to the heating coil 136 when thetemperature inside the casing 102 is below the first threshold. Theprocessor 140 may turn off the power to the heating coil 136 when thetemperature inside the casing 102 is above the second threshold, whichis larger than the first threshold.

The temperature of the air inside the casing 102, in some embodiments,may be controlled by an application program running on an externalelectronic device, such as a smartphone, a laptop, a tablet, a desktopcomputer, etc. For example, the application program may receive atemperature selection through a user interface and may wirelessly sendthe temperature selection, through one of the wireless transceivers 130,to the processor 140 of the air breathing device 100 to modulate (i.e.,adjust the temperature up or down) or turn the electric heating coil 136on or off. Some embodiments may provide a temperature selection control(not shown) on the casing 102. The temperature selection control may bea knob. The temperature selection control may be a multi position switchto control the temperature, for example, to low, medium, or high. Theprocessor 140 of the air breathing device 100 may use the knob or theswitch selection to control the temperature inside the casing 102 bymodulating or turning the electric heating coil 136 on or off.

In the embodiment depicted in FIGS. 1-4D, the air breathing device 100includes two electric heating coils 136, which are located close to thecorresponding air intake ports 137. Other embodiments may include adifferent number of electric heating coils, which may be placed in otherlocations inside the casing 102. The electric heating coil 136, in someembodiments, may be removed, for example, to do maintenance, or toreduce the weight and air pressure drop during warm seasons. Theelectric heating coil 136 may be removed through the access cover 184that provides access to both the air intake dampers 113 and the electricheating coil 136.

It should be noted that the number and the locations of differentcomponents of the air breathing device 100 may be different in differentembodiments. As such, the figures only show examples of the number andthe location of different components of the air breathing device 100.For instance, the number and the location of the UV light sources 108may be different in different embodiments. Different embodiments mayinclude one or more air intake ports 137, where each air intake port mayinclude one or more air filter cartridges 112 (either a combined airfilter cartridge or separate particulate and carbon filters), and a setof air intake dampers 113. The air intake ports 137 may be located infront and/or on the four sides (left, right, up, or down sides) of thecasing 102.

Different embodiments may include one or more air discharge ports 138,where each air discharge port 138 may include a set of air dischargedampers 117. The air discharge ports 138 may be located in front, and/oron the four sides (left, right, up, or down sides) of the casing 102.The depicted embodiment include one UVC light isolation screen 114 foreach pair of air intake port 137 and air discharge port 138. In otherembodiments, each air intake port 137 and air discharge port 138 mayinclude a separate UVC light isolation screen 114.

FIG. 9 is a top view of the reusable purified air breathing device ofFIG. 1 , illustrating different components of the air filtration andsterilization of the air breathing device, according to various aspectsof the present disclosure. FIG. 9 illustrates different components ofthe air breathing device 100, such as the facepiece 180, the noseenclosure 101, the harness handles 105, the UV light sources 108, therechargeable batteries 109, the UVC light isolation screens 111 and 114,the air filter cartridges 112, the dampers 113 and 117, the electricheating coils 136, the air temperature sensors 131, the UV Light on/offswitch 122, and the air pressure differential sensor 139. For clarity,some of the UV light sources 108 are not shown and/or not labeled.

As shown in FIG. 9 , the UVC light isolation screens 114 are between thecorresponding air filter cartridge 112 and the interior of the casing102, allowing the air filter cartridges 112 to be changed even when theUV light sources 108 are on, without the UV light to leak to the outsideof the casing 102.

FIG. 10 is a side cross sectional view of the reusable purifiedbreathing air device along the line A-A shown in FIG. 9 , and FIG. 11 isa front cross sectional view of the reusable purified air breathingdevice along the line B-B shown in FIG. 9 , according to various aspectsof the present disclosure. With reference to FIG. 10 , the air tube 147may transfer the air between the decontamination chamber 110 and thewearer's mouth. As shown in FIG. 10 , the UVC light isolation screen 111may be positioned inside the air tube 147 to prevent UV light to leakfrom the decontamination chamber 110 into the wearer's mouth.

With reference to FIG. 11 , the interior surface of the decontaminationchamber 110 may reflect UV light. The reflective material includesmaterial such as, for example, and without limitations, aluminum foil,ePTFE, polyethylene film, etc. The reflective surface increases theexposure of the microorganisms to UV rays. Every side in the interior ofthe decontamination chamber 110 may include UV light sources and thereflective surfaces.

The placement of the UV light sources 108 inside the interior cavity(e.g., inside the decontamination chamber 110), as opposed to placingthe UV light sources 108 outside the casing 102 of the air breathingdevice provides the technical advantage of exposing the microorganismsthat have already entered the air breathing device 100 (either from theoutside environment or through the wearer's mouth) as well as preventingthe wearer and persons near the wearer from being exposed to UV rays.The reflective surface placed inside the interior cavity (e.g., insidethe decontamination chamber 110) provides the technical advantage ofincreasing the exposure of the microorganisms to UV rays.

FIG. 12 is a side cross sectional view of the reusable purifiedbreathing air device along the line C-C shown in FIG. 9 , and FIG. 13 isa front cross sectional view of the reusable purified air breathingdevice along the line D-D shown in FIG. 9 , according to various aspectsof the present disclosure. The cross section of FIG. 12 shows the airintake port 137, the air filter cartridge 112, the intake dampers 113,the electric heating coil 136, the air temperature sensors 131, theharness handles 105, some of the UV light sources 108, and the UVC lightisolation screen 114.

The cross section of FIG. 13 shows the UVC light isolation screen 114and the discharge dampers 117. The position of the UVC light isolationscreen 114 is such that the UV light sources 108 are separated from theexterior of the casing 102. For example, as shown in FIG. 12 , the UVClight isolation screen 114 is between the UV light sources 108 and theair discharge port 138. As shown in FIG. 13 , the UVC light isolationscreen 114 is positioned such that the exhaled air goes through the UVClight isolation screen 114 before the air is discharged through thedischarge dampers 117 to the outside of the casing 102.

II. Alternative Embodiments

The air breathing device of some embodiments may provide connection todifferent networks, such as, for example, and without limitations,connection to the Internet, connection to cellular networks, a Wi-Ficonnection, a Bluetooth connection, etc. The air breathing device, insome embodiments, may function as an Internet of Things (IoT) device.

FIG. 14 is a perspective view of a reusable purified air breathingdevice that provides network connection, one or more cameras, one ormore display screens, a GPS receiver, a microphone, a flashlight, one ormore wireless transceivers, and one or more speaker(s), according tovarious aspects of the present disclosure. FIG. 15 is a side elevationview, and FIG. 16 is a back perspective view, FIG. 17A is a top view,FIG. 17B is a front and side perspective view, and FIG. 17C is a backand side perspective view of the reusable purified air breathing deviceof FIG. 14 . FIGS. 15-17C only show the components of the air breathingdevice 100 that are visible from the outside of the air breathing device100.

With reference to FIGS. 14-17C, the air breathing device 100 may includesimilar components as the air breathing device 100 of FIGS. 1-13 . Forexample, the air breathing device 100 of FIGS. 14-17C may include a noseenclosure 101, a casing 102, several harness handles 105, a harness 106,one or more UV light sources 108, a UV light status indicator 196, oneor more rechargeable batteries 109, a decontamination chamber 110, oneor more UVC light isolation screens 111 and 114, one or more air filtercartridges 112, several sets of dampers 113 and 117, one or moreelectric heating coils 136, one or more air temperature sensors 131, aUV Light on/off switch 122, a set of harnesses (or straps) 106, and/oran air pressure differential sensor 139. The air breathing device 100may include a USB port 410 (FIG. 4D).

The air breathing device 100 of FIGS. 14-17C may include one or moreadditional components, such as, one or more ear pods or similar audiodevices 123, a rear camera lens 124, a fixed display screen 126, aforward camera lens 127, a retractable display screen 128, an opening119 for the retractable screen, an audio speaker 120, a microphone 121,a flashlight 125, a processor 140, computer readable media 141, one ormore wireless transceivers 130, and/or a GPS receiver 129, and/or acamera lens 197 directed to the wearer's mouth.

With reference to FIGS. 14-17C, the air breathing device 100 may includeone or more wireless transceivers 130. The wireless transceiver(s) 130may include a cellular transceiver, a Wi-Fi transceiver, and/or aBluetooth transceiver to provide connection to one or more networksand/or to one or more external electronic devices. The GPS receiver 129may be configured to receive the air breathing device's location fromone or more satellites. The air breathing device 100 may include anassisted GPS (A-GPS) (not shown) to receive assistance data from anetworked server to improve the startup performance of the GPS receiverand/or to save power. The network connections may allow the processor140 to communicate with one or more external electronic devices andfunction as an IoT device.

The air breathing device 100, in some embodiments, may include one ormore ear pods or similar audio devices 123 (FIG. 17A), which may belocated on the harness 106 (as shown) or may be located on the casing102 (not shown). The air breathing device 100, in some embodiments, mayinclude a microphone 121 and one or more audio speakers 120. Since theair breathing device 100 covers the mouth of the wearer, anyconversation through the air breathing device 100 may be difficult orhard to understand. To facilitate conversation through the air breathingdevice 100, the microphone 121 may be installed inside the air breathingdevice 100, and one or more audio speakers 106 may be installed on theoutside of the air breathing device 100. The audio speaker(s) 106, insome embodiments, may play the sounds captured by the microphone 121.The air breathing device 100 may also include one or more flashlights125 (only one is shown). The flashlight(s) 125, in differentembodiments, may be turned on or off by different mechanisms. Forexample, the flashlight(s) 125 may be turned on or off by turning,pushing, or by using an on/off switch (not shown). The flashlight(s)125, in some embodiments, may be turned on or off in response toreceiving one or more signals from an external electronic device.

The air breathing device 100, in some embodiments, may include aretractable flat or curved display screen 128 to display information tothe wearer and a fixed display screen 126 to display information toothers. The retractable display screen 128 is shown in FIGS. 14-17C asbeing extended to the wearer's eye level. The display screen 128 may beretracted in a corresponding opening 119 when the display screen 128 isnot being used.

The retractable display screen 128 may enable the wearer to view contentthrough networks, such as, the Internet. For example, the processor 140may receive content (e.g., text, images, videos, etc.) through thewireless transceiver(s) 130 and may display the content on the displayscreen 128.

The following are several non-limiting examples of the retractablescreen 128 and technologies used to project contents on the retractablescreen of some embodiments. The retractable display screen 128, in someembodiments, may be a transparent display (e.g., a head-up display(HUD)) to allow the wearer to see through the screen 128. Theretractable display screen 128, in some embodiments, may be LiquidCrystal on Silicon (LCOS), which is a miniaturized reflectiveactive-matrix LCD. The retractable display screen 128, in someembodiments, may include several lenses that point images into the airbreathing device 100 wearer's eyes.

The retractable display screen 128, in some embodiments, may includeadjustable opacity, which may help adding focus to a video, or aidvisibility on a bright day. For example, the retractable display screen128 may include Polymer Dispersed Liquid Crystal (PDLC), which mayinclude two layers of transparent conductive indium tin oxide (ITO)films with polymer dispersed liquid crystal in between. The opacity maybe controlled by a switch or a knob (not shown).

The air breathing device 100, in some embodiments, may include a fixeddisplay screen 126 (e.g., and without limitations, a liquid crystaldisplay (LCD) screen). The air breathing device 100 covers the mouth ofwearer, making the communication with other people difficult. The fixeddisplay screen 126 may enhance communication between the wearer andother persons through the camera lens 197 mounted inside the air tube147 to view the wearer's lips.

In some embodiments, the camera lens 197 may capture videos or imageswhile the person is speaking. The processor 140 may receive the videosand/or images from the camera lens 197 and may display the videos and/orimages on the fixed display screen 126. In addition to, or in lieu ofusing the camera lens 197, the processor 140 may generate images of thewearer's lips on the fixed display screen 126 based on the wearer voicecaptured by the microphone 121. For example, the microphone 121 maycapture the wearer's voice, the processor 140 may convert the voice intosimulated lip movements, and the processor 140 may display the simulatedlip movements to the fixed display screen 126.

The fixed display screen 126 may be mounted in front of the airbreathing device 100. For example, the fixed display screen 126 may belocated on the center of the surface of the casing that is opposite tothe face of the wearer and may be positioned to be visible by personsfacing the wearer's face. The fixed display screen 126 may also be usedfor displaying other content such as displaying text messages, emojis,augmented reality, multimedia content, etc. For example, the processor140 may receive the text messages, emojis, augmented reality, multimediacontent, etc., from external electronic devices that may communicatewith the air breathing device processor 140 through one or more of thetransceivers 130. The processor 140 may display the received content onthe fixed display screen 126.

The air breathing device 100, in some embodiments, may include a rearfacing camera 124 mounted on the harness 106. The rear view captured bythe rear facing camera 124 may be observed through the retractabledisplay screen 128. The rear facing camera 124 may be installed on thestraps 106, as shown in FIG. 17A.

It should be noted that the air breathing devices of some embodimentsmay not include the UV light sources 108, may not include the dampers113, 117, or may include neither the UV light sources 108 nor thedampers 113, 117. These embodiments may include one or more of the othercomponents disclosed herein, such as, for example and withoutlimitations, the air filter cartridge 112, the speaker 120, themicrophone 121, the ear pods (or similar audio devices) 123, the rearcamera lens 124, the flashlight, 125, the fixed display screen 126, theforward camera lens 127, the retractable display screen 128, and/or theheating coil 134.

The embodiments that do not include the UV light sources 108 may notinclude the UVC light isolation screens 111, 114, the UVC Light on/offswitch 122, and the UV light status indicator 196. The embodiments thatdo not include motorized dampers 113, 117 may not include the optionalmotor(s) 600 (FIG. 6 ), the rotating shaft(s) 610, the linear movementconverter(s) 620, and the rod(s) 660). Furthermore, the embodiments thatdo not include the dampers 113, 117 may not include separate air intake137 and air discharge 138 ports. For example, some of these embodimentsmay include the port(s) 137 (but not the port(s) 138) and may use theport(s) 137 for both air intake and air discharge. Some of theseembodiments may include the port(s) 138 (but not the port(s) 137) andmay use the port(s) 138 for both air intake and air discharge. In theseembodiments, the air filter cartridge 112 and the heating coil 136 maybe located anywhere between the opening of the port 138 and the air tube147.

FIG. 18 is a top view of the reusable purified air breathing device ofFIG. 14 , illustrating different components of the air filtration andsterilization of the air breathing device 100, according to variousaspects of the present disclosure. FIG. 19 is a side cross sectionalview of the reusable purified breathing air device along the line E-Eshown in FIG. 18 , according to various aspects of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 18 shows components similar to the cross sectional view of FIG. 9 .In addition, FIG. 18 illustrates the microphone 121, the fixed displayscreen 126, the retractable screen 128, the GPS receiver 129, thewireless transceiver(s) 130, the processor 140, the computer readablemedia 141, and the camera lens 197 that is directed to the wearer'smouth. Some of the components shown on FIG. 18 such as the GPS receiver129, wireless transceiver(s) 130, the processor 140, and the readablemedia 141 may be located outside or inside of the air breathing device100 in different embodiments.

FIG. 19 shows components similar to the cross sectional view of FIG. 10. In addition, FIG. 19 illustrates the microphone 121, the fixed displayscreen 126, the retractable screen 128, the camera lens 197 that isdirected to the wearer's mouth, and a light source 199. The light source199 may be, for example, and without limitations, one or more a LEDsthat may illuminate the wearer's mouth of the wearer. The camera 197 maycapture the movements of the wearer's lips. The processor 140 of the airbreathing device 100 may display the live video captured by the camera197 on the fixed display 126. Since the wearer's mouth is hidden behindthe casing 102, displaying the lips movements on the fixed displayscreen 126 may help other people to better understand what words thatthe wearer is conversing.

In should be noted that the external electronic devices that communicatewith the air breathing device 100 may include one or more processors andcomputer readable media. The computer readable media of the externalelectronic devices may include different types of memory units, such as,read-only-memory, volatile read-and-write memory, and/or non-volatileread-and-write memory. The read-only-memory may store static data andinstructions that are needed by the processor. The non-volatileread-and-write memory may store instructions and data even when thepower to the non-volatile memory is off. Some embodiments may use asmall mass-storage device (such as a magnetic or optical disk and itscorresponding disk drive) as the non-volatile read-and-write memory.

The volatile read-and-write memory of the external electronic devicesmay be random access memory and may be used as system memory. The systemmemory may store some of the instructions and data that the processorneeds at runtime. From these various memory units, the processor of theexternal electronic devices may retrieve instructions to execute, anddata to process, in order to execute and control different electroniccomponents of the external electronic devices and to participate in someof the processes of some embodiments.

In the embodiments of FIGS. 1-19 , the air breathing device 100 is ahalf face air breathing device that covers the nose, the mouth, and thechin of the wearer. In other embodiments, the air breathing device maybe a full face air breathing device. In these embodiments, the airbreathing device may cover the head and the neck of the wearer and mayform a hood, or a helmet, around the wearer's head. The full face airbreathing device of some embodiments may not include the retractablescreen 128, the opening 119 for the retractable screen, the harness 106and/or the harness handles 105. In some embodiments, the ear plugs 123may be installed inside the hood or helmet of the full face airbreathing device. In some embodiments, the rear view camera lens 124 maybe installed on the outside and back of the hood of the full face airbreathing device.

The following is another alternative embodiment of the reusable purifiedair breathing device of the present embodiments. FIG. 20 is aperspective view of a reusable purified air breathing device, accordingto various aspects of the present disclosure. FIG. 21 is a sideelevation view, FIG. 22 is a front elevation view, and FIG. 23 is a topview of the reusable purified air breathing device of FIG. 20 . FIGS.21-23 only show the components of the air breathing device 100 that arevisible from the outside of the air breathing device 100.

With reference to FIGS. 20-23 , the air breathing device 100 may includea nose enclosure 101, a casing 102, one or more breathing air dischargescreens 103, one or more breathing air entry screens 104, severalharness handles 105, a harness 106 (FIG. 22 ), one or more UV lightsources 108, one or more rechargeable batteries 109, a decontaminationchamber 110, one or more UVC light isolation screens 111 and 114, and116, one or more air filter cartridges 112, several sets of dampers 113and 117, one or more discharge air filters 115, one or more isolationelastic membranes 118, one or more audio speakers 120, a microphone 121,a UVC Light on/off switch 122, a flashlight 125, and/or an air pressuredifferential sensor 139.

With reference to FIGS. 20-23 , the air breathing device's casing 102may be made of a material, such as, for example, and withoutlimitations, hard plastic. The exterior of the casing may be thermallyinsulated by a layer of insulating material, by injected foaminsulation, or by other material and methods. For example, in someembodiments, the body of the casing 102 may include a cavity close tothe exterior of the casing 102, and foam insulation may be injected intothe cavity during the manufacturing of the casing 102. In someembodiments, the exterior of the casing 102 may include a layer ofinsulating material. The back side of the air breathing device, close tothe face of the wearer may not be insulated.

The nose enclosure 101 may be configured to enclose the nose of a personthat wears the air breathing device 100 (this person is referred toherein as the wearer). The air breathing device 100 may include a liningat the edges of the casing 102 where the casing 102 comes into contactwith the wearer's face. The lining may be made of soft and flexiblematerial such as, for example, and without limitations, silicone, tomake the air breathing device 100 airtight and to protect the wearer'sface against the rigid casing material.

The casing 102, the lining, and/or the nose enclosure 101, in someembodiments, may be made in different sizes to match the faces ofdifferent persons. For example, and without limitations, the airbreathing device 100 may be made in different sizes, such as, extrasmall, small, medium, large, extra-large, etc. Each size may come withan appropriate size of casing, lining, and/or nose enclosure.

The lining. in some embodiments, may be customized to fit an individualperson's face contours. For example, an external computer system at apoint of sale, or at an establishment, such as, for example, and withoutlimitations, a hospital, a factory, a military facility, etc., may beused to measure an individual person's face contours. Next, the computermay identify an air breathing device size that best fits the individualperson's face. The computer may then select one of many different sizesof linings for the selected air breathing device size to further fit theair breathing device to the person's face.

It should be noted the casing 102 in different embodiments may havedifferent shapes and/or different contours. For example, in FIG. 20 ,the front and the four sides of the casing 102 are shown assubstantially rectangular pieces. In other embodiments, the front and/orthe sides of the casing 102 may be curved towards the back (towards theface of the wearer) in order to facilitate the lining to better fit tothe contours of a person's face. Accordingly, the present embodimentsare not limited to the exemplary shape of the casing 102 shown in FIG.20 .

The air breathing device 100 may include one or more air intake ports137, each air intake port 137 may be covered by a breathing air entryscreen 104. The air breathing device 100 may include one or more airdischarge ports 138 (only one air discharge port is shown), each airdischarge port 138 may be covered by one or more breathing air dischargescreens 103.

The air breathing device 100 may include several sets of dampers 113 and117. In the perspective view of FIG. 20 , the dampers 117 are locatedbehind the breathing air discharge screen 103. Further details of thedampers 117 are shown in FIGS. 24 and 25 . The dampers 113 and 117 areconfigured to open and close in response to the difference between theair pressure inside of the casing 102 and the air pressure outside ofthe air breathing device 100. The intake dampers 113 are hinged towardsthe inside of the casing 102 and the discharge dampers 117 are hingedtowards the outside of the casing 102. During air inhalation, the airpressure inside the casing 102 is lower than the outside air pressure.The intake dampers 113, during the inhalation, open up and only allowthe air into the air breathing device 100. The discharge dampers 117,during the inhalation process, are in close position and do not allowthe air to enter into, or exit from, the air breathing device 100through the air discharge port 138.

During the air exhalation, the air pressure inside the casing 102 ishigher than the outside air pressure. The discharge dampers 117, duringthe exhalation, open up and only allow the air to leave the airbreathing device 100. The intake dampers 113, during the exhalation, arein close position and do not allow the air to enter into, or exit from,the air breathing device 100 through the air intake ports 137.

The dampers 113 and 117 are, therefore, configured, such that thebreathing air may only enter into the air breathing device 100 throughair intake ports 137, and may leave the air breathing device 100 throughthe discharge port 138. The dampers 113 and 117 provide the technicaladvantage of controlling the path of breathing air when the air is beinginhaled and exhaled.

Some embodiments may use motorized dampers. In these embodiments, thepath of the breathing air is controlled through the use of motorizeddampers. The motorized dampers may be controlled based on themeasurements made by the air pressure differential sensor 139 located onthe casing 102 of the air breathing device 100 with openings to both theinside and the outside of the casing 102. The air pressure differentialsensor 139 may be configured to measure the difference between the airpressure inside and outside of the casing 102.

With continued reference to FIGS. 20-23 , the air breathing device 100may include one replaceable air filter cartridge 112 at each air intakeport 137. The air filter cartridges 112 may include a particulate filterand a carbon filter combined into one cartridge. The particulate filtersmay be made of fibrous or porous material, and may be configured tocapture (e.g., through electrostatically charged fibers, such as, forexample, and without limitations, poly-propylene, or other material)particulates such as dust, pollen, mist, fumes, and smoke. Theparticulate filters may be configured to filter oil based particles andnon-oil based particles.

The carbon filter may be configured to filter gases through a bed ofactivated carbon (activated charcoal). The carbon filter may removeodors and gaseous pollutants such as volatile organic compounds orozone. In addition to, or in lieu of, the air filter cartridges 112 thatinclude both particulate and carbon filters, some embodiments mayinclude individual particulate filters and/or individual carbon filters.The discharge port 138 may be equipped with a replaceable particulatefilter 115 to protect the discharge dampers 117 from ambientparticulates.

The filters of the present embodiments may be configured to suitdifferent applications such as, medical, industrial, and/or personaluse. Some of the present embodiments may require the filters to bereplaced after a period of time, for example, after several days,several weeks, several months, etc. In some embodiments, the airpressure differential sensor 139 measurements may be used to determinewhether the air filters need to be changed. For example, the air filtersmay need to be changed when the air pressure differential sensor 139measurements exceed a threshold over a period of time. As describedbelow, some embodiments may include a processor that may provide airfilter replacement warnings and/or may control the motorized dampersbased on the measurements received from the air pressure differentialsensor 139.

Since the prior art respirators rely solely on heavy duty filters tocleanse and disinfect the air, the prior art respirators have high airpressure drops, which makes breathing difficult for the wearers. Thebreathing air devices of the present embodiments use the UVC light todisinfect the air and kill and/or disable harmful microorganisms and donot rely on heavy duty air filters to disinfect the air. The breathingair devices of the present embodiments provide the technical advantageof using air filters with relatively low air pressure drop, inconjunction with the cleansing action of the UVC light rays, that makeit easier for the wearers to breath than the prior art respirators.

With continued reference to FIGS. 20-23 , the air breathing device 100may include one or more UV light sources 108 (shown as small roundcircles in FIG. 20 ). For clarity, only some of the UV light sources arelabeled and/or shown in FIG. 20 . The UV rays have sterilization anddisinfection effects by destroying the molecular structure of DNA andRNA in microorganisms, such as viruses, bacteria, and fungi, resultingin growth cell death and/or regenerative cell death. The UV rays aredivided into A, B, C, and D bands, and the microorganisms disinfectioneffect is most effective in the C band (UVC) with a wavelength of200-280 nm (nanometer), which may destroy microorganisms' DNA. The UVClight and the air filter cartridges 112 and 115 may create adecontamination chamber 110 inside the casing 102 of the air breathingdevice 100.

In some embodiments, the interior surface of the air breathing device'scasing 102 may be embedded with one or more of the UV light sources 108that may expose both incoming and leaving air (in and out of the airbreathing device) to UVC light to sterilize and disinfect the air toavoid the spread of deceases. As described below, the air breathingdevice 100 is configured to totally encapsulate the UV rays, such thatthe skin, mouth, or eyes of the wearer are not exposed to UV rays, andthe UV rays may not leave the casing 102 and enter into the surroundingarea.

The UV light sources 108 may be powered by one or more on-boardrechargeable batteries (e.g., and without limitations, lithium ionbatteries) 109, and/or powered through an external source via a USB portmounted on the casing 102. Power through the USB port may be used, forexample, and without limitations, when the wearer is sitting in anairplane chair or in an office chair over an extended period of time.

The UV light sources 108 may be turned on or off by a UV Light on/offswitch 122. For example, in an environment where there is little or nodanger of microorganism exposure, the UV light sources 108 may be turnedoff and the air breathing device 100 may be used to protect the wearerfrom dust, fumes, noxious gases, etc., that may be generated duringvarious tasks.

The air breathing device 100 may include several screens and/ormembranes to confine the UV rays inside the casing 102, to prevent theUV rays from reaching the wearer, and to prevent the UV rays fromentering the surrounding area. The air breathing device 100 may includeone or more UVC light isolation screens 111, 114, and 116, and/or one ormore isolation elastic membranes 118. The isolation elastic membrane 118may be configured to isolate the UV light in the interior of the casing102 and prevent the UV light to leak out of the back side of the casing102 towards the face of the wearer. The isolation elastic membranes 118,in some embodiments, may be made of semi soft material in order toenable some of the UV light sources 108 to be mounted on the isolationelastic membranes 118. For comfort of the wearer, the isolation elasticmembrane 118 may be configured such that there is a small gap betweenthe membrane 118 and the face of the wearer.

The UVC light isolation screen 111 may be configured to prevent themouth of the wearer from being exposed to the UV light. The airbreathing device 100 may include one or more slot openings 107 (shown inFIGS. 24-26 ) that may be configured to bring air through an opening inthe isolation elastic membrane 118 into the wearer's mouth. The UVClight isolation screen 111 may be positioned between the slot openings107 and the interior of the casing 102 to prevent the UV light to leakinto the wearer's mouth. Further details of the slot openings 107, theUVC light isolation screen 111, and the isolation elastic membranes 118are described below with reference to FIG. 25 .

The UVC light isolation screens 114 may be configured to prevent the UVlight from leaking to the outside of the casing 102 through the airintake ports 137. The UVC light isolation screen 116 may be configuredto prevent the UV light from leaking to the outside of the casing 102through the air discharge port 138. In the perspective view of FIG. 20 ,the breathing air discharge screen 103, the discharge air filter 115,the UVC light isolation screen 116, and the dampers 117 are shown to,respectively, cover each other. The casing 102, the isolation elasticmembrane 118, the UVC light isolation screens 111, 114, and 116completely confine the UV rays inside the casing 102 and prevent the UVrays from reaching the wearer and from entering the surrounding area.

The air breathing device 100 may include a harness 106 (FIG. 22 ). Forclarity, the harness is not shown in FIGS. 20-21 and 23 . The harness106 may be configured to secure the air breathing device 100 behind thehead and neck of the wearer. Although the harness 106 is shown as havingone band, the harness 106, in some embodiments, may be made of more thanone band. The harness 106, in some embodiments, may be made of soft andflexible material. The harness 106, in other embodiments, may be made ofsemi soft material to allow one or more accessories to be placed on theharness, as described below. The harness 106 may be connected to thecasing 102 by one or more harness handles 105.

The air breathing device 100, in some embodiments, may include amicrophone 121 and one or more audio speakers 120. Since the airbreathing device 100 covers the mouth of the wearer, any conversationthrough the air breathing device 100 may be difficult or hard tounderstand. To facilitate conversation through the air breathing device100, the microphone 121 may be installed inside the air breathing device100, and one or more audio speakers 106 may be installed on the outsideof the air breathing device 100. The air breathing device 100 may alsoinclude one or more flashlights 125 (only one is shown). Theflashlight(s) 125, in different embodiments, may be turned on or off bydifferent mechanisms. For example, the flashlight(s) 125 may be turnedon or off by turning, pushing, or by using an on/off switch (not shown).

It should be noted that the number and the locations of differentcomponents of the air breathing device 100 may be different in differentembodiments. As such, FIG. 20-32 only show examples of the number andthe location of different components of the air breathing device 100.For instance, the number and the location of the UV light sources 108may be different in different embodiments. Different embodiments mayinclude one or more air intake ports 137, where each air intake port mayinclude a breathing air entry screen 104, one or more air filtercartridges 112 (either a combined air cartridge or separate particulateand carbon filters), a UVC light isolation screen 114, and a set of airintake dampers 113. The air intake ports 137 may be located in front,and/or on the four sides (left, right, up, or down sides) of the casing102.

Different embodiments may include one or more air discharge ports 138,where each air discharge port 138 may include a breathing air dischargescreen 103, one or more air filter cartridges 115 (either a combined aircartridge or separate particulate and/or carbon filters), a UVC lightisolation screen 116, a set of air discharge dampers 117. The airdischarge ports 138 may be located in front, and/or on the four sides(left, right, up, or down sides) of the casing 102.

FIG. 24 is a top view of the reusable purified air breathing device ofFIG. 20 , illustrating different components of the air filtration andsterilization of the air breathing device, according to various aspectsof the present disclosure. FIG. 24 illustrates different components ofthe air breathing device 100, such as the nose enclosure 101, thebreathing air discharge screens 103, the breathing air entry screens104, the harness handles 105, the slot openings 107, the UV lightsources 108, the rechargeable batteries 109, the UVC light isolationscreens 114, and 116, the air filter cartridges 112, the dampers 113 and117, the discharge air filter cartridge 115, the isolation elasticmembranes 118, the microphone 121, the UV Light on/off switch 122, andthe air pressure differential sensor 139. For clarity, some of the UVlight sources 108 are not shown and/or not labeled.

As shown in FIG. 24 , the isolation screens 114 (each shown as a narrowline) are between the corresponding air filter cartridges 112 and theinterior of the casing 102, allowing the air filter cartridges 112 to bechanged even when the UV light sources 108 are on, without the UV lightto leak to the outside of the casing 102. The isolation screen 116 isbetween the air filter cartridge 115 and the interior of the casing 102,allowing the air filter cartridge 115 to be changed even when the UVlight sources 108 are on, without the UV light to leak to the outside ofthe casing 102.

FIG. 25 is a side cross sectional view of the reusable purifiedbreathing air device along the line A-A shown in FIG. 24 , and FIG. 26is a front cross sectional view of the reusable purified air breathingdevice along the line B-B shown in FIG. 24 , according to variousaspects of the present disclosure. With reference to FIG. 25 , the slotopenings 107 may be located on the isolation elastic membrane 118, wherethe wearer may inhale and exhale the air through the slot openings 107.As shown in FIG. 25 , the UVC light isolation screen 111 may bepositioned between the slot openings 107 and the interior of the casing102 to prevent the UV light to leak into the wearer's mouth. The airdischarge port 138 may include the breathing air discharge screen 103,the discharge air filter cartridge 115, the UVC light isolation screen116, and the discharge dampers 117. The chin support plate 142 may bemade of soft material and may be configured to support the wearer'schin.

With reference to FIG. 26 , each air intake port 137 may include abreathing air entry screens 104, an air filter cartridge 112, a UVClight isolation screen 114, and a set of intake dampers 113. The UVClight isolation screen 111 may be positioned between the slot openings107 and the interior of the casing 102. One or more UV light sources 108(shown by small circles) may be installed on the isolation elasticmembrane 118 facing towards the interior of the casing 102. For clarity,some of the UV light sources 108 are not shown and/or not labeled inFIGS. 25 and 26 .

In addition to, or in lieu of, some of the features, such as theflashlight 125, the speaker(s) 120, the microphone 121, etc., describedabove with reference to FIGS. 20-26 , the air breathing device of someembodiments may provide connection to different networks, such as, forexample, and without limitations, connection to the Internet, connectionto cellular networks, a Wi-Fi connection, a Bluetooth connection, etc.The air breathing device, in some embodiments, may provide an airheating mechanism to warm up the air before being inhaled by the wearer.The air breathing device, in some embodiments, may function as anInternet of Things (IoT) device.

FIG. 27 is a perspective view of a reusable purified air breathingdevice that provides network connection, one or more cameras, one ormore display screens, a GPS receiver, a cellular signal receiver, one ormore Wi-Fi and/or Bluetooth receivers, and/or an air heating module,according to various aspects of the present disclosure. FIG. 28 is afront elevation view, and FIG. 29 is a top view, of the reusablepurified air breathing device of FIG. 27 . FIG. 30 is a top view of thereusable purified air breathing device of FIG. 27 illustrating furthercomponents of the air breathing device, according to various aspects ofthe present disclosure. The side elevation view of FIG. 27 is similar tothe side elevation view shown in FIG. 21 . FIGS. 28 and 29 only show thecomponents of the air breathing device 100 that are visible from theoutside of the air breathing device 100.

With reference to FIGS. 27-30 , the air breathing device 100 may includesimilar components as the air breathing device 100 of FIGS. 20-26 . Forexample, the air breathing device 100 of FIGS. 27-30 may include a noseenclosure 101, a casing 102, one or more breathing air discharge screens103, one or more breathing air entry screens 104, several harnesshandles 105, a harness 106, one or more slot openings 107, one or moreUV light sources 108, one or more rechargeable batteries 109, adecontamination chamber 110, one or more UVC light isolation screens111, 114, and 116, one or more air filter cartridges 112, several setsof dampers 113 and 117, one or more discharge air filters 115, one ormore isolation elastic membranes 118, an audio speaker 120, a microphone121, a UV Light on/off switch 122, a flashlight 125, and/or an airpressure differential sensor 139.

The air breathing device 100 of FIGS. 27-30 may include one or moreoptional components, such as, a heat recovery sponge 132, one or moreelectric heating coils 136, a condensate drain pan 133, a condensatepipe 134, a removable condensate accumulator tank 135, one or more earpods or similar audio devices 123, an air temperature sensor 131, a rearcamera lens 124, a display screen 126, a camera lens 127, a retractablescreen 128, an opening 119 for the retractable screen, a processor 140,computer readable media 141, a cellular signal receiver 130, one or moreWi-Fi and/or Bluetooth receivers (not shown), and/or a GPS receiver 129.

The air breathing device 100, in some embodiments (for example in anyembodiments described herein with reference to FIGS. 20-32 ), mayinclude the processor 140 and the computer readable media 141. Thecomputer readable media 141 may include different types of memory units,such as, read-only-memory, volatile read-and-write memory, and/ornon-volatile read-and-write memory. The read-only-memory may storestatic data and instructions that are needed by the processor 140. Thenon-volatile read-and-write memory may store instructions and data evenwhen the power to the non-volatile memory is off. Some embodiments mayuse a small mass-storage device (such as a magnetic or optical disk andits corresponding disk drive) as the non-volatile read-and-write memory.

The volatile read-and-write memory device may be random access memoryand may be used as system memory. The system memory may store some ofthe instructions and data that the processor needs at runtime. In someembodiments, the processes of the present embodiments may be stored inthe system memory, the non-volatile memory, and/or the read-only memory.From these various memory units, the processor 140 may retrieveinstructions to execute, and data to process, in order to execute andcontrol different electronic components of the air breathing device 100and to perform the processes of some embodiments.

With reference to FIGS. 27 and 30 , the air breathing device 100, insome embodiments, may include a heating mechanism to warm the breathingair. For example, in cold environments, the air breathing device 100 maybe equipped with a heating module which may include a heat recoverysponge 132, and/or one or more electric heating coils 136, and an airtemperature sensor 131.

The heat recovery sponge 132 may capture the heat through the airexhalation process where the warm and moist breathing air comes out ofthe wearer's lungs. The heat recovery sponge 132 may use the capturedheat to warm up the incoming air before entering the wearer's lungs.Warming up the breathing air may prevent the wearer from catching coldor pneumonia during cold seasons. The heat recovery sponge 132 may bemade of a highly conductive material, such as, for example, and withoutlimitations, copper.

The discharged air coming out of people's lung is humid. When thedischarged air is exposed to cold surface of the heat recovery sponge132, the air may form condensation which need to be removed. Theembodiments that include the heat recovery sponge 132 may include acondensate drain pan 133 underneath the heat recovery sponge 132 tocollect condensate from the heat recovery sponge 132. The bottom of thecondensate drain pan 133 may be sloped toward the center of thecondensate drain pan 133 in order prevent the condensate from spillingout of the pan 133. The condensation may be routed towards the removablecondensate accumulator tank 135 via the connecting condensate pipe 134.

In addition to, or in lieu of, the heating sponge 132, some embodiments,may include the electric heating coil 136 to warm up the inhalation airin cold environments. The source of power for the electric heating coil136 may be the on-board rechargeable batteries 109 or through anexternal power source via USB port (not shown) mounted on the casing102. Power through the USB port may be used, for example, and withoutlimitations, when the wearer is sitting in a chair over an extendedperiod of time. The air temperature sensor 131 may be configured tomeasure the temperature of the air being inhaled inside the casing 102downstream of the electric heating coil. The air temperature sensor 131measurements may be used by the processor 140 to control the temperatureof the air being inhaled. For example, the processor 140 may regulatethe temperature of the air being inhaled by modulating or turning theelectric heating coil 136 on or off.

In the embodiment depicted in FIGS. 27-30 , the air breathing device 100includes one electric heating coil 136, which is located close to theslot openings 107. Other embodiments may include one or more electricheating coils, which may be placed in other locations inside the casing102. For instance, some embodiments may include two electric heatingcoils 136 and each electric heating coil 136 may be located at one ofthe air intake ports 137 downstream of the corresponding air filter 112.For example, and without limitations, each electric heating coil 136 maybe located at one of the air intake ports 137 between the air filter 112and the set of dampers 113.

With reference to FIGS. 27-30 , the air breathing device 100 may includea cellular signal receiver 130 and/or one or more Wi-Fi and/or Bluetoothreceivers (not shown) to provide connection to one or more networks. TheGPS receiver 129 may be configured to receive the air breathing device'slocation from one or more satellites. The air breathing device 100 mayinclude an assisted GPS (A-GPS) (not shown) to receive assistance datafrom a networked server to improve the startup performance of the GPSreceiver and/or to save power. The network connections may allow theprocessor 140 to communicate with one or more external electronicdevices and function as an IoT device.

The air breathing device 100, in some embodiments, may include amoveable flat or curved display screen 128. The display screen 128 isshown in FIGS. 27 and 28 as being extended to the wearer's eye level.The display screen 128 may be retracted in a corresponding opening 119when the display screen 128 is not being used. The display screen 128may enable the wearer to display content through networks, such as, theInternet.

The air breathing device 100, in some embodiments, may include one ormore ear pods or similar audio devices 123, which may be located on theharness 106. The air breathing device 100, in some embodiments, mayinclude a display screen 126 (e.g., and without limitations, a liquidcrystal display (LCD) screen). The air breathing device 100 covers themouth of wearer, making the communication with other people difficult.The display screen 126 may enhance communication between the wearer andother persons. The display screen 126 may be mounted in front of the airbreathing device 100. The wearer may use the display screen 126 formessaging or signaling to other persons. The air breathing device 100,in some embodiments, may include a rear facing camera 124 mounted on theharness 106. The rear view captured by the rear facing camera 124 may beobserved through the display screen 128.

FIG. 31 is a side cross sectional view of the reusable purifiedbreathing air device along the line A-A shown in FIG. 30 , and FIG. 32is a front cross sectional view of the reusable purified air breathingdevice along the line B-B shown in FIG. 30 , according to variousaspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 31 shows components similar to the cross sectional view of FIG. 25. In addition, FIG. 31 illustrates the heat recovery sponge 132, theelectric heating coil 136, the air temperature sensor 131, thecondensate drain pan 133, the condensate pipe 134, the removablecondensate accumulator tank 135, the retractable screen 128, the opening119 for the retractable screen, and the GPS receiver 129.

FIG. 32 shows components similar to the cross sectional view of FIG. 26. In addition, FIG. 32 illustrates the heat recovery sponge 132, theelectric heating coil 136, the air temperature sensor 131, thecondensate drain pan 133, the condensate pipe 134, the removablecondensate accumulator tank 135, the retractable screen 128, thecellular signal receiver 130, the GPS receiver 129, and/or the ear pods123.

In the embodiments of FIGS. 20-32 , the air breathing device 100 is ahalf face air breathing device that covers the nose, the mouth, and thechin of the wearer. In other embodiments, the air breathing device maybe a full face air breathing device. In these embodiments, the airbreathing device may cover the head and the neck of the wearer and mayform a hood, or a helmet, around the wearer's head. The full face airbreathing device of some embodiments may not include the retractablescreen 128, the opening 119 for the retractable screen, the harness 106and/or the harness handles 105. In some embodiments, the ear plugs 123may be installed inside the hood of the full face air breathing device.In some embodiments, the rear view camera lens 124 may be installed onthe outside of the hood of the full face air breathing device.

In a first aspect, an air breathing device is provided. The airbreathing device comprises a casing. The air breathing device comprisesan air passage cavity encompassed by the casing. The air breathingdevice comprises a set of one or more air intake ports, each air intakeport connecting the air passage cavity to an outside of the casingthrough an air intake damper, each air intake damper comprising a set ofone or more blades and a corresponding set of one or more hinges, eachair intake damper blade configured to rotate in a first direction aroundthe corresponding hinge in response to an air pressure inside of the airpassage cavity being less than an air pressure outside of the casing toopen the air intake damper, and each air intake damper blade configuredto rotate in a second direction around the corresponding hinge inresponse to an air pressure inside of the air passage cavity being morethan an air pressure outside of the casing to close the air intakedamper. The air breathing device comprises a set of one or more airdischarge ports, each air discharge port connecting the air passagecavity to the outside of the casing through an air discharge damper,each air discharge damper comprising a set of one or more blades and acorresponding set of one or more hinges, each air discharge damper bladeconfigured to rotate in a third direction around the corresponding hingein response to an air pressure inside of the air passage cavity beingmore than an air pressure outside of the casing to open the airdischarge damper, and each air discharge damper blade configured torotate in a fourth direction around the corresponding hinge in responseto an air pressure inside of the air passage cavity being less than anair pressure outside of the casing to close the air discharge damper.The air breathing device comprises an air tube connecting the airpassage cavity to a mouth of a person wearing the air breathing device.The air breathing device comprises a set of one or more ultraviolet (UV)light sources inside the air passage cavity. The air breathing devicecomprises a first set of one or more UV light screens located inside theair tube, the first set of one or more UV light screens separating theair passage cavity from the person's mouth. The air breathing devicecomprises a second set of one or more of UV light screens, each UV lightscreen in the second set of UV light screens separating the air passagecavity from one air intake port and one air discharge port.

In an embodiment of the first aspect, the UV light sources areconfigured to generate UV rays with a wavelength ranging between 200nanometers to 280 nanometers.

In another embodiment of the first aspect, at least a portion of aninterior surface of the air passage cavity comprises a material that isreflective to UV rays.

An embodiment of the first aspect further comprises a switch to turn theset of UV light sources on or off.

Another embodiment of the first aspect further comprises a replaceableair filter located inside the casing at each air intake port.

Another embodiment of the first aspect further comprises a perforatedscreen at each air intake port; and a perforated screen at each airdischarge port.

Another embodiment of the first aspect further comprises a retractabledisplay screen; a set of one or more wireless transceivers; and aprocessor configured to: receive content, through the set of wirelesstransceivers, from one or more electronic devices external to the airbreathing device; and display the content on the retractable displayscreen.

In another embodiment of the first aspect, the retractable displayscreen is configured to display content to the person wearing the airbreathing device.

In another embodiment of the first aspect, the retractable displayscreen is one of a head-up display (HUD), a Liquid Crystal on Silicon(LCOS), and a plurality of lenses configured to point images into eyesof the person wearing the air breathing device.

Another embodiment of the first aspect further comprises a set of one ormore batteries configured to provide power to the processor, the set ofUV light sources, the retractable display screen, and the set ofwireless transceivers.

Another embodiment of the first aspect further comprises a universalserial bus (USB) port mounted on the casing, the USB port configured toconnect to an external power source and provide power to the processor,the retractable screen, the set of UV light sources, and the set ofwireless transceivers.

In another embodiment of the first aspect, the air breathing devicecomprises a fixed display screen located on the casing and positioned tobe viewable by persons facing the person wearing the air breathingdevice. The air breathing device comprises a processor configured toreceive media content and display the media content on the fixed displayscreen.

Another embodiment of the first aspect further comprises a camera lensdirected to the mouth of the person wearing the air breathing device.The camera lens is configured to capture media content comprising one ofa plurality of images and a set of one or more videos. The processor isconfigured to display the captured content on the fixed display screen.

Another embodiment of the first aspect further comprises a microphoneconfigured to capture sounds spoken by the wearer of the air breathingdevice. The processor is configured to convert the captured sounds intosimulated lip movements and display the simulated lip movements on thefixed display screen.

Another embodiment of the first aspect further comprises a flashlightand a switch to turn the flashlight on or off.

Another embodiment of the first aspect further comprises a microphoneconfigured to capture sounds spoken by the wearer of the air breathingdevice and a set of one or more speakers configured to play the soundscaptured by the microphone.

In another embodiment of the first aspect, the air breathing devicecomprises a set of one or more heating coils located between the airintake dampers and the air passage cavity. The air breathing devicecomprises a set of one or more temperature sensors configured to measurethe air temperature inside the casing. The air breathing devicecomprises a set of one or more transceivers. The air breathing devicecomprises a processor configured to: receive temperature measurementsfrom the set of temperature sensors; receive first and secondtemperature thresholds from an external electronic devicecommunicatively coupled to the processor through one of the transceiversin the set of transceivers, where the second threshold is larger thanthe first threshold; turn on power to the set of heating coils when thetemperature measurements are below the first threshold; and turn off thepower to the heating coils when the temperature measurements are abovethe second threshold.

Another embodiment of the first aspect further comprises a universalserial bus (USB) port mounted on the casing, the USB port configured toconnect to an external power source and provide power to the set ofheating coils, the set of transceivers, the processor, and the set of UVlight sources.

Another embodiment of the first aspect further comprises a processor; aplurality of motors, each motor corresponding to an air intake damper oran air discharge damper, each motor configured to receive one or moresignals and in response to receiving the signals open or close thecorresponding damper; and an air pressure differential sensor configuredto measure a difference between the air pressure inside of the airpassage cavity and the air pressure outside of the casing; wherein theprocessor is configured to: receive the air pressure differentialreadings from the air pressure differential sensor; in response todetermining that the air pressure inside of the air passage cavityexceeds the air pressure outside of the casing by a first threshold sendone or more signals to the motors corresponding to the air intakedampers to close the air intake dampers, and send one or more signals tothe motors corresponding to the air discharge dampers to open the airdischarge dampers; and in response to determining that the air pressureoutside of the casing exceeds the air pressure inside of the air passagecavity by a second threshold send one or more signals to the motorscorresponding to the air intake dampers to open the air intake dampers,and send one or more signals to the motors corresponding to the airdischarge dampers to close the air discharge dampers.

In a second aspect, an air breathing device is provided. The airbreathing device comprises a casing. The air breathing device comprisesan air passage cavity encompassed by the casing. The air breathingdevice comprises a set of one or more air intake ports, each air intakeport connecting the air passage cavity to an outside of the casingthrough an air intake damper, each air intake damper comprising a set ofone or more blades and a corresponding set of one or more hinges, eachair intake damper blade configured to rotate in a first direction aroundthe corresponding hinge in response to an air pressure inside of the airpassage cavity being less than an air pressure outside of the casing toopen the air intake damper, and each air intake damper blade configuredto rotate in a second direction around the corresponding hinge inresponse to an air pressure inside of the air passage cavity being morethan an air pressure outside of the casing to close the air intakedamper. The air breathing device comprises a set of one or more airdischarge ports, each air discharge port connecting the air passagecavity to the outside of the casing through an air discharge damper,each air discharge damper comprising a set of one or more blades and acorresponding set of one or more hinges, each air discharge damper bladeconfigured to rotate in a third direction around the corresponding hingein response to an air pressure inside of the air passage cavity beingmore than an air pressure outside of the casing to open the airdischarge damper, and each air discharge damper blade configured torotate in a fourth direction around the corresponding hinge in responseto an air pressure inside of the air passage cavity being less than anair pressure outside of the casing to close the air discharge damper.The air breathing device comprises an air tube connecting the airpassage cavity to a mouth of a person wearing the air breathing device.

An embodiment of the second aspect further comprises a processor; aplurality of motors, each motor corresponding to an air intake damper oran air discharge damper, each motor configured to receive one or moresignals and in response to receiving the signals open or close thecorresponding damper; and an air pressure differential sensor configuredto measure a difference between the air pressure inside of the airpassage cavity and the air pressure outside of the casing; wherein theprocessor is configured to: receive the air pressure differentialreadings from the air pressure differential sensor; in response todetermining that the air pressure inside of the air passage cavityexceeds the air pressure outside of the casing by a first threshold sendone or more signals to the motors corresponding to the air intakedampers to close the air intake dampers, and send one or more signals tothe motors corresponding to the air discharge dampers to open the airdischarge dampers; and in response to determining that the air pressureoutside of the casing exceeds the air pressure inside of the air passagecavity by a second threshold send one or more signals to the motorscorresponding to the air intake dampers to open the air intake dampers,and send one or more signals to the motors corresponding to the airdischarge dampers to close the air discharge dampers.

Another embodiment of the second aspect further comprises a set of oneor more batteries configured to provide power to the processor and theplurality of motors.

Another embodiment of the second aspect further comprises a retractabledisplay screen; a set of one or more wireless transceivers; and aprocessor configured to: receive content, through the set of wirelesstransceivers, from one or more electronic devices external to the airbreathing device; and display the content on the retractable displayscreen.

In an embodiment of the second aspect, the retractable display screen isconfigured to display content to the person wearing the air breathingdevice.

In another embodiment of the second aspect, the retractable displayscreen is one of a head-up display (HUD), a Liquid Crystal on Silicon(LCOS), and a plurality of lenses configured to point images into eyesof the person wearing the air breathing device.

Another embodiment of the second aspect further comprises a set of oneor more batteries configured to provide power to the processor, theretractable screen, and the set of wireless transceivers.

Another embodiment of the second aspect further comprises a universalserial bus (USB) port mounted on the casing, the USB port configured toconnect to an external power source and provide power to the processor,the retractable screen, and the set of transceivers.

In another embodiment of the second aspect, the air breathing devicecomprises a fixed display screen located on the casing and positioned tobe viewable by persons facing the person wearing the air breathingdevice. The air breathing device comprises a processor configured toreceive media content and display the media content on the fixed displayscreen.

Another embodiment of the second aspect further comprises a camera lensdirected to the mouth of the person wearing the air breathing device.The camera lens is configured to capture media content comprising one ofa plurality of images and a set of one or more videos. The processor isconfigured to display the captured content on the fixed display screen.

Another embodiment of the second aspect further comprises a microphoneconfigured to capture sounds spoken by the wearer of the air breathingdevice. The processor is configured to convert the captured sounds intosimulated lip movements and display the simulated lip movements on thefixed display screen.

Another embodiment of the second aspect further comprises a flashlightand a switch to turn the flashlight on or off.

Another embodiment of the second aspect further comprises a microphoneconfigured to capture sounds spoken by the wearer of the air breathingdevice and a set of one or more speakers configured to play the soundscaptured by the microphone.

Another embodiment of the second aspect further comprises a replaceableair filter located inside the casing at each air intake port.

In another embodiment of the second aspect, the air breathing devicecomprises a set of one or more heating coils located between the airintake dampers and the air passage cavity. The air breathing devicecomprises a set of one or more temperature sensors configured to measurethe air temperature inside the casing. The air breathing devicecomprises a set of one or more transceivers. The air breathing devicecomprises a processor configured to: receive temperature measurementsfrom the set of temperature sensors; receive first and secondtemperature thresholds from an external electronic devicecommunicatively coupled to the processor through one of the transceiversin the set of transceivers, where the second threshold is larger thanthe first threshold; turn on power to the set of heating coils when thetemperature measurements are below the first threshold; and turn off thepower to the heating coils when the temperature measurements are abovethe second threshold.

Another embodiment of the second aspect further comprises a universalserial bus (USB) port mounted on the casing, the USB port configured toconnect to an external power source and provide power to the set ofheating coils, the processor, and the set of transceivers.

In a third aspect, an air breathing device is provided. The airbreathing device comprises a casing. The air breathing device comprisesan air passage cavity encompassed by the casing. The air breathingdevice comprises a set of one or more air intake ports. The airbreathing device comprises a set of one or more air discharge ports. Theair breathing device comprises an air tube connecting the air passagecavity to a mouth of a person wearing the air breathing device. The airbreathing device comprises a set of one or more ultraviolet (UV) lightsources inside the air passage cavity. The air breathing devicecomprises a first set of one or more UV light screens separating the airpassage cavity from the person's mouth. The air breathing devicecomprises a second set of one or more of UV light screens, each UV lightscreen in the second set of UV light screens separating the air passagecavity from one air intake port and one air discharge port.

In an embodiment of the third aspect, the UV light sources areconfigured to generate UV rays with a wavelength ranging between 200nanometers to 280 nanometers.

An embodiment of the third aspect further comprises a set of one or morebatteries configured to provide power to the set of UV light sources.

In a fourth aspect, an air breathing device is provided. The airbreathing device comprises a casing. The air breathing device comprisesan air passage cavity encompassed by the casing. The air breathingdevice comprises a set of one or more air intake ports. The airbreathing device comprises a set of one or more air discharge ports. Theair breathing device comprises an air tube connecting the air passagecavity to a mouth of a person wearing the air breathing device. The airbreathing device comprises a retractable display screen. The airbreathing device comprises a set of one or more wireless transceivers.The air breathing device comprises a processor configured to: receivecontent, through the set of wireless transceivers, from one or moreelectronic devices external to the air breathing device; and display thecontent on the retractable display screen.

In an embodiment of the fourth aspect, the retractable display screen isconfigured to display content to the person wearing the air breathingdevice.

In another embodiment of the fourth aspect, the retractable displayscreen is one of a head-up display (HUD), a Liquid Crystal on Silicon(LCOS), and a plurality of lenses configured to point images into eyesof the person wearing the air breathing device.

An embodiment of the fourth aspect further comprises a set of one ormore batteries configured to provide power to the processor, theretractable display screen, and the set of wireless transceivers.

In a fifth aspect, an air breathing device is provided. The airbreathing device comprises a casing. The air breathing device comprisesan air passage cavity encompassed by the casing. The air breathingdevice comprises a set of one or more air intake ports. The airbreathing device comprises a set of one or more air discharge ports. Theair breathing device comprises an air tube connecting the air passagecavity to a mouth of a person wearing the air breathing device. The airbreathing device comprises a fixed display screen located on the casingand positioned to be viewable by persons facing the person wearing theair breathing device. The air breathing device comprises a processorconfigured to receive media content and display the media content on thefixed display screen.

An embodiment of the fifth aspect further comprises a camera lensdirected to the mouth of the person wearing the air breathing device.The camera lens is configured to capture media content comprising one ofa plurality of images and a set of one or more videos. The processor isconfigured to display the captured content on the fixed display screen.

Another embodiment of the fifth aspect further comprises a microphoneconfigured to capture sounds spoken by the wearer of the air breathingdevice. The processor is configured to convert the captured sounds intosimulated lip movements and display the simulated lip movements on thefixed display screen.

Another embodiment of the fifth aspect further comprises a set of one ormore batteries configured to provide power to the processor, the fixeddisplay screen, and the microphone.

The above description presents the best mode contemplated for carryingout the present embodiments, and of the manner and process of practicingthem, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable anyperson skilled in the art to which they pertain to practice theseembodiments. The present embodiments are, however, susceptible tomodifications and alternate constructions from those discussed abovethat are fully equivalent. Consequently, the present invention is notlimited to the particular embodiments disclosed. On the contrary, thepresent invention covers all modifications and alternate constructionscoming within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure.

What is claimed is:
 1. An air breathing device, comprising: a casing; anair passage cavity encompassed by the casing; a set of one or more airintake ports, each air intake port connecting the air passage cavity toan outside of the casing through an air intake damper, each air intakedamper comprising a set of one or more blades and a corresponding set ofone or more hinges, each air intake damper blade configured to rotate ina first direction around the corresponding hinge in response to an airpressure inside of the air passage cavity being less than an airpressure outside of the casing to open the air intake damper, and eachair intake damper blade configured to rotate in a second directionaround the corresponding hinge in response to an air pressure inside ofthe air passage cavity being more than an air pressure outside of thecasing to close the air intake damper; a set of one or more airdischarge ports, each air discharge port connecting the air passagecavity to the outside of the casing through an air discharge damper,each air discharge damper comprising a set of one or more blades and acorresponding set of one or more hinges, each air discharge damper bladeconfigured to rotate in a third direction around the corresponding hingein response to an air pressure inside of the air passage cavity beingmore than an air pressure outside of the casing to open the airdischarge damper, and each air discharge damper blade configured torotate in a fourth direction around the corresponding hinge in responseto an air pressure inside of the air passage cavity being less than anair pressure outside of the casing to close the air discharge damper; anair tube connecting the air passage cavity to a mouth of a personwearing the air breathing device; a set of one or more ultraviolet (UV)light sources inside the air passage cavity; a first set of one or moreUV light screens located inside the air tube, the first set of one ormore UV light screens separating the air passage cavity from theperson's mouth; and a second set of one or more of UV light screens,each UV light screen in the second set of UV light screens separatingthe air passage cavity from one air intake port and one air dischargeport.
 2. The air breathing device of claim 1, wherein the set of UVlight sources are configured to generate UV rays with a wavelengthranging between 200 nanometers to 280 nanometers.
 3. The air breathingdevice of claim 1, wherein at least a portion of an interior surface ofthe air passage cavity comprises a material that is reflective to UVrays.
 4. The air breathing device of claim 1 further comprising a switchto turn the set of UV light sources on or off.
 5. The air breathingdevice of claim 1 further comprising a replaceable air filter locatedinside the casing at each air intake port.
 6. The air breathing deviceof claim 1 further comprising: a perforated screen at each air intakeport; and a perforated screen at each air discharge port.
 7. The airbreathing device of claim 1 further comprising: a retractable displayscreen; a set of one or more wireless transceivers; and a processorconfigured to: receive content, through the set of wirelesstransceivers, from one or more electronic devices external to the airbreathing device; and display the content on the retractable displayscreen.
 8. The air breathing device of claim 7, wherein the retractabledisplay screen is configured to display content to the person wearingthe air breathing device.
 9. The air breathing device of claim 7,wherein the retractable display screen is one of a head-up display(HUD), a Liquid Crystal on Silicon (LCOS), and a plurality of lensesconfigured to point images into eyes of the person wearing the airbreathing device.
 10. The air breathing device of claim 7 furthercomprising a set of one or more batteries configured to provide power tothe processor, the retractable display screen, and the set of wirelesstransceivers.
 11. The air breathing device of claim 1 furthercomprising: a fixed display screen located on the casing and positionedto be viewable by persons facing the person wearing the air breathingdevice; and a processor configured to: receive media content; anddisplay the media content on the fixed display screen.
 12. The airbreathing device of claim 11 further comprising: a camera lens directedto the mouth of the person wearing the air breathing device; wherein thecamera lens is configured to capture media content comprising one of aplurality of images and a set of one or more videos; and wherein theprocessor is configured to display the captured content on the fixeddisplay screen.
 13. The air breathing device of claim 11 furthercomprising: a microphone configured to capture sounds spoken by thewearer of the air breathing device; wherein the processor is configuredto convert the captured sounds into simulated lip movements; and displaythe simulated lip movements on the fixed display screen.
 14. The airbreathing device of claim 1 further comprising: a flashlight; and aswitch to turn the flashlight on or off.
 15. The air breathing device ofclaim 1 further comprising: a microphone configured to capture soundsspoken by the wearer of the air breathing device; and a set of one ormore speakers configured to play the sounds captured by the microphone.16. The air breathing device of claim 1 further comprising: a set of oneor more heating coils located between the air intake dampers and the airpassage cavity; a set of one or more temperature sensors configured tomeasure the air temperature inside the casing; a set of one or moretransceivers; and a processor configured to: receive temperaturemeasurements from the set of temperature sensors; receive first andsecond temperature thresholds from an external electronic devicecommunicatively coupled to the processor through one of the transceiversin the set of transceivers, wherein the second threshold is larger thanthe first threshold; turn on power to the set of heating coils when thetemperature measurements are below the first threshold; and turn off thepower to the heating coils when the temperature measurements are abovethe second the threshold.
 17. The air breathing device of claim 16further comprising a universal serial bus (USB) port mounted on thecasing, the USB port configured to connect to an external power sourceand provide power to the set of heating coils, the set of transceivers,the processor, and the set of UV light sources.
 18. The air breathingdevice of claim 1 further comprising: a processor; a plurality ofmotors, each motor corresponding to an air intake damper or an airdischarge damper, each motor configured to receive one or more signalsand in response to receiving the signals open or close the correspondingdamper; and an air pressure differential sensor configured to measure adifference between the air pressure inside of the air passage cavity andthe air pressure outside of the casing; wherein the processor isconfigured to: receive the air pressure differential readings from theair pressure differential sensor; in response to determining that theair pressure inside of the air passage cavity exceeds the air pressureoutside of the casing by a first threshold send one or more signals tothe motors corresponding to the air intake dampers to close the airintake dampers, and send one or more signals to the motors correspondingto the air discharge dampers to open the air discharge dampers; and inresponse to determining that the air pressure outside of the casingexceeds the air pressure inside of the air passage cavity by a secondthreshold send one or more signals to the motors corresponding to theair intake dampers to open the air intake dampers, and send one or moresignals to the motors corresponding to the air discharge dampers toclose the air discharge dampers.
 19. An air breathing device,comprising: a casing; an air passage cavity encompassed by the casing; aset of one or more air intake ports, each air intake port connecting theair passage cavity to an outside of the casing through an air intakedamper, each air intake damper comprising a set of one or more bladesand a corresponding set of one or more hinges, each air intake damperblade configured to rotate in a first direction around the correspondinghinge in response to an air pressure inside of the air passage cavitybeing less than an air pressure outside of the casing to open the airintake damper, and each air intake damper blade configured to rotate ina second direction around the corresponding hinge in response to an airpressure inside of the air passage cavity being more than an airpressure outside of the casing to close the air intake damper; a set ofone or more air discharge ports, each air discharge port connecting theair passage cavity to the outside of the casing through an air dischargedamper, each air discharge damper comprising a set of one or more bladesand a corresponding set of one or more hinges, each air discharge damperblade configured to rotate in a third direction around the correspondinghinge in response to an air pressure inside of the air passage cavitybeing more than an air pressure outside of the casing to open the airdischarge damper, and each air discharge damper blade configured torotate in a fourth direction around the corresponding hinge in responseto an air pressure inside of the air passage cavity being less than anair pressure outside of the casing to close the air discharge damper;and an air tube connecting the air passage cavity to a mouth of a personwearing the air breathing device.
 20. The air breathing device of claim19 further comprising: a processor; a plurality of motors, each motorcorresponding to an air intake damper or an air discharge damper, eachmotor configured to receive one or more signals and in response toreceiving the signals open or close the corresponding damper; and an airpressure differential sensor configured to measure a difference betweenthe air pressure inside of the air passage cavity and the air pressureoutside of the casing; wherein the processor is configured to: receivethe air pressure differential readings from the air pressuredifferential sensor; in response to determining that the air pressureinside of the air passage cavity exceeds the air pressure outside of thecasing by a first threshold send one or more signals to the motorscorresponding to the air intake dampers to close the air intake dampers,and send one or more signals to the motors corresponding to the airdischarge dampers to open the air discharge dampers; and in response todetermining that the air pressure outside of the casing exceeds the airpressure inside of the air passage cavity by a second threshold send oneor more signals to the motors corresponding to the air intake dampers toopen the air intake dampers, and send one or more signals to the motorscorresponding to the air discharge dampers to close the air dischargedampers.
 21. The air breathing device of claim 19 further comprising: aretractable display screen; a set of one or more wireless transceivers;and a processor configured to: receive content, through the set ofwireless transceivers, from one or more electronic devices external tothe air breathing device; and display the content on the retractabledisplay screen.
 22. The air breathing device of claim 21, wherein theretractable display screen is one of a head-up display (HUD), a LiquidCrystal on Silicon (LCOS), and a plurality of lenses configured to pointimages into eyes of the person wearing the air breathing device.
 23. Theair breathing device of claim 21 further comprising a set of one or morebatteries configured to provide power to the processor, the retractabledisplay screen, and the set of wireless transceivers.
 24. The airbreathing device of claim 19 further comprising: a fixed display screenlocated on the casing and positioned to be viewable by persons facingthe person wearing the air breathing device; and a processor configuredto: receive media content; and display the media content on the fixeddisplay screen.
 25. The air breathing device of claim 24 furthercomprising: a camera lens directed to the mouth of the person wearingthe air breathing device; wherein the camera lens is configured tocapture media content comprising one of a plurality of images and a setof one or more videos; and wherein the processor is configured todisplay the captured content on the fixed display screen.
 26. The airbreathing device of claim 24 further comprising: a microphone configuredto capture sounds spoken by the wearer of the air breathing device;wherein the processor is configured to convert the captured sounds intosimulated lip movements; and display the simulated lip movements on thefixed display screen.
 27. The air breathing device of claim 19 furthercomprising: a flashlight; and a switch to turn the flashlight on or off.28. The air breathing device of claim 19 further comprising: amicrophone configured to capture sounds spoken by the wearer of the airbreathing device; and a set of one or more speakers configured to playthe sounds captured by the microphone.
 29. The air breathing device ofclaim 19 further comprising a replaceable air filter located inside thecasing at each air intake port.
 30. The air breathing device of claim 19further comprising: a set of one or more heating coils located betweenthe air intake dampers and the air passage cavity; a set of one or moretemperature sensors configured to measure the air temperature inside thecasing; a set of one or more transceivers; and a processor configuredto: receive temperature measurements from the set of temperaturesensors; receive first and second temperature thresholds from anexternal electronic device communicatively coupled to the processorthrough one of the transceivers in the set of transceivers, wherein thesecond threshold is larger than the first threshold; turn on power tothe set of heating coils when the temperature measurements are below thefirst threshold; and turn off the power to the heating coils when thetemperature measurements are above the second the threshold.
 31. The airbreathing device of claim 30 further comprising a universal serial bus(USB) port mounted on the casing, the USB port configured to connect toan external power source and provide power to the set of heating coils,the processor, and the set of transceivers.